Rikki-Tikki-Tavi

May 31, 2004
In a starred review, PW
praised Pinkney's smooth retelling and lush illustration of one of Kipling's best-loved animal tales: "Full-bodied watercolors showcase visually thrilling confrontations portraits are warm without being sappy." Ages 3-8.

September 14, 1992
With this newly illustrated edition of the treasured classic--written in the 1890s as part of the Jungle Books --readers can once again be captivated by the tale of a mongoose who is taken in by a family of British colonials living in India. Although a few Victorianisms in the text will need to be explained to young readers, the story has held up remarkably well over a century's time. Rikki's fight to defend his family from the menacing cobras Nag and Nagaina remains as suspenseful and emotive as ever. The creatures of the Indian garden come truly alive in Kipling's expert prose--the birds sing out messages of joy and warning; the cobra rears and spreads his sinister hood; the brave mongoose leaps and springs, victorious at last. In Davis's ( The Jolly Mon ; Trouble Dolls ) acrylic paintings, dominated by the greens of the garden and the browns of the earth, readers can clearly see the nut-colored mongoose, his adoptive family in their period dress and the slithering snakes. However, the artist's style and chosen medium produce a somewhat flat, torpid appearance. Razor-sharp writing with rather dull artistic accompaniment. Ages 6-up.

Starred review from September 29, 1997
Pinkney (The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories) applies his considerable talents to the smooth retelling and lush illustration of one of Kipling's best-loved animal tales. An English family living in India can hardly foresee their good fortune when a scraggly-looking mongoose literally washes up on their doorstep. But Rikki-tikki-tavi (so named for the clucking sounds he makes) becomes champion protector of garden and household as he courageously defends his new human friends from the dangerous snakes living on the grounds. Kipling's exotic animal world comes to life in the voices of Rikki-tikki and other talkative creatures, and Pinkney carefully structures his descriptive passages to present well-rounded animal characters. The hissing, threat-filled dialogue of wicked cobras Nag and Nagaina and Darzee the bird's excited calls of warning perfectly express their respective personalities. Even pacing allows the excitement to build gradually and rewards readers with several adrenaline-rush payoffs within the story. Full-bodied watercolors showcase visually thrilling confrontations between Rikki-tikki and his slithering enemies, while portraits of Rikki-tikki snuggling with the family are warm without being sappy. A captivating work. All ages.