  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 11/01/2012 PreS-Gr 2—Mama Jumbo and the other animal denizens of Zanzibar Road are back. In this busy, large-size chapter book, the elephant heads to the market, bargains for a mirror and fabric, fixes the taxi on the trip home, and makes dinner and a shirt for Little Chico. He gets compliments from neighbors about his new garment and learns that "you look good enough to eat" is simply an expression. He also makes Mama Jumbo feel better about her reflection in the mirror. All this activity is broken down into five chapters that have the text interspersed among Daly's colorful, detailed artwork. Clearly depicting the moods of the various scenes, the setting shines through in the text, illustrations, and flavor of the story. Sure to be a hit where Welcome to Zanzibar Road (Clarion, 2006) is popular.—Catherine Callegari, Gay-Kimball Library, Troy, NH - Copyright 2012 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Bulletin for the Center... - 01/01/2013 As in Daly’s previous title about the residents of Zanzibar Road (Welcome to Zanzibar Road), five short chapters follow elephant Mama Jumbo and her chicken son Little Chico, as Mama haggles vendors at the market near her African village, fixes a taxi with some bubble gum and her trunk, makes Chico a handsome little shirt, and eventually puts her son to bed after a busy day. There’s really not much action here, but the events are colorfully and engagingly described and Daly evokes a nicely specific sense of place even if the location given (“Africa”) is vague. Daly’s storytelling voice is invitingly colloquial (“The market was busy, busy! But that was fine, because Mama Jumbo really LOVED a loud, busy market”) and Mama Jumbo and Little Chico are both amusing and endearing. The art (line and watercolor touched with digital washes of color) is equally energetic but tempered by plenty of white space, keeping the compositions detailed but not cluttered; the spread of the market scene is particularly absorbing. The pleasantly plump Mama Jumbo, with her patterned dress and red “pom pom hat,” is clearly a unique individual, as is every member of the animal cast. Fans of Daly’s first Zanzibar Road title will find more to love here. JH - Copyright 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Loading...
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