[.ca] Down to the Sea with Mr. Magee (ISBN 0811824993)

A Fantastic Book!:
You'll be amazed at just how vivid and bright van Dusen's pictures look in this unexpected treat. The colors seem to jump off the page. Add that to some super-detailed work (especially his splashes of water), multiple perspectives, and purposive lack of shading, and you have a kind of magical realism that recalls the best of Pixar animation. Yet van Dusen paradoxically evokes a decidedly 50's retro setting and style in his neon-bright gouache illustrations. This is a fun all-rhyming story that quickly engages the reader. Mr. Magee and his dog Dee decide to go to the sea. Soon, "they suddenly spied off the bow to the east A big pod of whales (there were fifty at least!)" When a "little whale" (it's huge) playfully blows them 50 feet up in the air with a blast of water, the boat lands on the top of a huge tree. Their surprising rescue takes the book to its happy conclusion. Van Dusen's uniquely bold colors and old-fashioned sensibilities combine wonderfully, and the rhyming story flows smoothly with its enthralling pictures and subtle wit. A great book for elementary school age kids (and anyone else, really) to look at and read aloud; I recommend it very highly!

Vivid Illustration, Cut writing, very nice author:
My wife and I had our 14 month old son, Matthew, up at LL Bean's flagship store in Freeport, Maine this past July. On our way out, we saw author Chris Van Dusen autographing two of his books - this one, and the one about camping with Mr. Magee. We chose this one because in Maine, we were staying by the sea. Mr. Van Dusen not only signed the book, but also drew a wonderful picture of a whale and gave an inscription wrote an inscreption to our "adventurous boy" Matthew. He posed for pictures and introduced us to his own family (with 2 boys). We read constantly to our young son Matthew (probably having well over 200 books) and this is among his top favorites. He points to the vivid illustrations and loves the little dog Dee. We are sure this is among is favorites because of the great colors and cute pictures. It is among our favorites for the same reason, but also because of all the autographed children's books we have, we know this is a terrific author who takes the time to do more than quickly sign his name. Thanks Chris!

Timeless:
Having read books to my children every night for the past 10 years, I can honestly say that this is one of the few children's books that you really don't mind reading for the 25th time in a row. It's got great rhymes that kids love to repeat (or fill in the endings), and the illustrations are lovably retro, fun, and colorful. A pure delight! I can't wait for the sequel!

Down to the Sea With Mr. Magee:
This is an adorable book! We found this book at the public library 2 years ago and have ordered countless copies from amazon for gifts. It's clever, unique and fun. My son had this book memorized as a 2 1/2 year old and continues to enjoy it at 4 yrs. old. We're thrilled another one of Magee's adventures has been chronicled.

Cool:
This is a fun rhyming story about a man named Magee and his dog Dee. One day they decide to have a picnic on their boat. Everything is going well until a whale decides to play with their boat and they end up stuck in a tree. Luckily, the rest of the whales notice their plight and manage to save them. The book has a bit of tension, but it's not that scary, and there is a happy ending. The book is printed on pages that are thicker than normal, for heavy use. It has about 600 words.