Picture Books - Fire! Fire! Said Mrs. McGuire

Fire! Fire! Said Mrs. McGuire by Bill Martin, Jr. and illustrated by Vladimir Radunsky 2006

This is one of those cases where just because the author is familiar and beloved doesn’t mean it is one to be picked up off the shelf. There are a variety of book versions floating out there that take on these well-known Martin words with various illustrators. Some I have seen, some not. This version is definitely one that starts out with an interesting twist to what many use as a fire safety book for little ones. Unfortunately, the artwork in my opinion does not keep pace with the text. It is nice artwork though. However, when I came to the end I was left scratching my head going what was that all about. If this was intended to help familiarize wee ones with fire, it totally and I mean totally missed the mark. If it was suppose to be just a funny book, it too missed the mark. Martin has some great text to work with, but the artist interpretation didn’t meet the usual standards that match up with his rhyming prose. So, before I head off on a tangent let us just leave this book as a Shelve It, but remember Martin has others that are worth looking into.