Special Delivery

by Philip C. Stead, Matthew Cordell (Illustrator)

Overview

Sadie is on her way to deliver an elephant to her Great-Aunt Josephine, who lives completely alone and can really use the company.

She tries everything from mailing the elephant to boarding a plane, a train, and an alligator to get to her aunt's home. Along the way she meets an array of interesting characters, including an odd postal worker and a gang of bandit monkeys, who all help her get where she is going.

This eccentric and hilarious story from Philip C. Stead, the author of the Caldecott-winning A Sick Day for Amos McGee and illustrator Matthew Cordell will surprise and entertain from beginning to end.

This title has Common Core connections.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781596439313
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	03/03/2015
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 10.60(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Philip C. Stead is the author of the 2011 Caldecott Medal book A Sick Day for Amos McGee. His book A Home for Bird received four starred reviews, while his most recent book, Hello, My Name Is Ruby, has earned three starred reviews. Philip lives with his wife, illustrator Erin E. Stead, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Matthew Cordell created Trouble Gum, published by Feiwel and Friends. He has also illustrated several picture books, including Mighty Casey by James Preller and the Justin Case series by Rachel Vail. He lives outside Chicago with his lovely wife, the author Julie Halpern, their adorable daughter, and their generally well-mannered cat.

Editorial Reviews

Keeping this kind of whimsy aloft can be tricky, like kite-flying in a variable breeze, and Philip C. Stead's deadpan text, in combination with Matthew Cordell's fanciful but grounded drawings, is a master class in how to make that work: letting out enough string so that the silliness can soar but at the same time keeping the line taut so the whole thing doesn't fly away or plunge back to earth…Imagine Madeline escaped from Miss Clavel's supervision, or Eloise out from under Nanny's eye, and set loose in Wonderland in boring old Alice's place. More, please.

The New York Times Book Review - Bruce Handy

12/22/2014
Stead (Sebastian and the Balloon) channels some Russell Hoban–style loopiness with this story about Sadie, a girl attempting to ship an elephant to her Great-Aunt Josephine, “who lives almost completely alone and could really use the company.” When postal employee Jim shows Sadie how many stamps this would require—a wheelbarrowful—Sadie swipes a handy biplane and stuffs her elephant into the passenger seat. A crash follows, and an alligator comes to the rescue, after which Sadie and her elephant join a band of monkey train robbers, and complete their trip via ice-cream truck. Cordell’s (Rooting for You) loose pen, ink, and watercolor drawings, festooned with cheerful hand-lettered words (the phrase “chugga chugga beans beans” is especially likely to become a household mantra), strike precisely the right note of genteel wackiness. It isn’t easy to sustain and control a story that unfolds with the speed and unpredictability that this one does, but Stead and Cordell—like Sadie herself—deliver the goods. Ages 3–7. Author’s agent: Emily Van Beek, Folio Literary Management. Illustrator’s agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Colorful, expressive, detailed, and quirky.” —Booklist

“. . . a read-aloud winnter sure to deliver laughs to young readers.” —School Library Journal

“*Animal lovers and stamp collectors, especially but not exclusively, will be enthralled.” —Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW

“It isn’t easy to sustain and control a story that unfolds with the speed and unpredictability that this one does, but Stead and Cordell—like Sadie herself—deliver the goods.” —Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Cordell’s jacket design—based on the upside-down-printed “Inverted Jenny” stamp for the air mail service—makes an arresting introduction to this story of determined little Sadie, who uses all possible means of transportation to deliver an elephant. (Turn the cover around and see her flying the converted biplane.) Sadie explains that the elephant is for her Great-Aunt Josephine, who “lives almost completely alone and could use the company.” When the heavy elephant requires too many stamps for airmail, Sadie, in her aviator’s helmet and boots, borrows a plane and takes off with a roar. This is just the beginning of her fantastic journey to reach Great-Aunt J. The ever-confident Sadie is able to convince an alligator to guide them down a river, but the gasoline sputters out. From there, it is improvisation all the way: a train with a steam locomotive, a band of wild robber monkeys, and a well-equipped ice cream-truck. When they reach Great-Aunt Josephine’s, (surprise!) the ancient lady in beret and boots has company after all: a majestic lion, an ostrich, a big white horse, and a gorilla, to name just a few. Sadie and her great-aunt have a loving reunion, as they all sip hot chocolate, though Sadie must first send off a letter with bubble gum inside to thank the helpful alligator. The last image, showing the alligator blowing a bubble, certainly reinforces our faith in the postal system. Cordells’s ink and watercolor illustrations fill the pages with action, humor, and the spirit of adventure, each leading to the next scheme with dash and invention. Author and artist have created an exhilarating experience for readers or listeners. To see more of their work, try Stead’s Sebastian and the Balloon (Roaring Brook, 2014) or Cordell’s Another Brother (Feiwel & Friends, 2012). Reviewer: Barbara L. Talcroft; Ages 4 to 8.

Children's Literature - Barbara L. Talcroft

12/01/2014
PreS-Gr 2—How exactly does one deliver an elephant to a dear aunt "who lives almost completely alone and could really use the company"? Spunky young Sadie plans to send the pachyderm through the mail, but the wheelbarrow full of stamps required for the transaction makes her realize she needs another game plan. Undaunted, Sadie and the elephant travel by biplane, train, alligator and ice-cream truck to get to Great-Aunt Josephine, who as it turns out, doesn't really live almost completely alone thanks to Sadie. Watercolor and ink illustrations have a scratchy cartoonish quality reminiscent of James Stevenson that infuses the story with energy. From the "uh, oh" speech bubble hovering over the sputtering plane as Sadie realizes she's running out of gas to a train full of monkey bandits chowing down on bananas and canned beans, these two-page spreads are a comic delight, resulting in an engaging blend of perfectly paced adventure and visual humor. Add in a liberal use of exaggerated sound effects, and the outcome is a read-aloud winner sure to deliver laughs to young readers.—Teri Markson, Los Angeles Public Library

School Library Journal

★ 2014-11-11
Nothing will deter Sadie from her mission of transporting an elephant to her beloved Great-Aunt Josephine, who "lives almost completely alone and could really use the company."When the postmaster brings out a wheelbarrow full of stamps and a calculator, however, the carrot-topped heroine realizes she will need to find an alternative to mailing the pachyderm. She borrows a conveniently located biplane. Insiders will recognize this plane (inverted on the book jacket as it was on the most famous misprint in philatelic history); those who don't know the reference will just laugh at an upside-down airplane with a goggle-wearing elephant. After it crashes in a river, Sadie boards, in succession, an alligator, freight train (commandeered by bean-eating masked monkeys) and an ice cream truck. When readers finally meet the aunt, it becomes clear that she has been the recipient of many similar presents. Stead's fans will recognize the unique blend of quirky logic and compassion that drives his persistent wayfarers. Cordell's carefree lines and dappled watercolors draw viewers in with bold action and tiny touches of humor. Portions of text are treated graphically, and it is likely that "chugga chugga chugga BEANS BEANS BEANS" will linger in children's lexicons. Stamps do get their moment—in the conclusion and on the seek-and-find case beneath the dust jacket. Animal lovers and stamp collectors, especially but not exclusively, will be enthralled. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews