[.ca] Jabuti the Tortoise: A Trickster Tale from the Amazon (ISBN 0152053743)

From Amazon.com:
Another installment in Gerald McDermott's wise and whimsical trickster series, Jabutí the Tortoise tells the tale of the Amazon jungle's shiny-shelled mischief-maker. Although Jabutí doesn't come across as the most clever trickster around in this particular retelling (he's duped by that crabby old Vulture and ends up getting bailed out by the King of Heaven), the colorful pipe-player and his songs are clearly well loved. Well, by everybody but his victims, that is: "Jaguar could remember when Jabutí tricked him into chasing his own tail," and "Tapir could remember when Jabutí tricked him into a tug-of-war with Whale." But we do get to learn how Tortoise's shell became cracked, and why Toucan, Macaw, and Hummingbird boast such brilliant colors. Not the most notable entry in this region-by-region series, but beautiful and boldly colored nonetheless. Kids who aren't immediately hooked by Jabutí's story will likely still get drawn in by McDermott's vibrant colors and straightforward compositions of simply shaped jungle creatures set against a bright pink dawn. (Ages 4 to 8) Paul Hughes

Marvelous artwork enhances this trickster tale:
"Jabuti the Tortoise: A Trickster Tale from the Amazon" is told and illustrated by Gerald McDermott. It opens with the title character playing his flute. Jabuti wants to play his instrument at a festival for the King of Heaven, but another creature's jealousy leads to conflict. The fun story is brought to life by McDermott's superb artwork. His brightly colored illustrations have a highly stylized, almost surreal quality that I found very engaging. I loved the pictures of Jabuti, as well as those of the birds, trees, flowers, jaguar, and tapir. Dominated by bright pink and shades of green, the pictures really excite the eye. A charming book.