The text and the illustrations don't quite seem to go together. ( )

Lovely language and hysterically funny pictures. Reminds me of Summertime Waltz in a summer joy kind of way. ( )

Lively family reunion story but a bit too frantic for my taste. Didn't understand the beasty and ogre references. ( )

Not good for storytime - perfect for adults though. ( )

Dozens of Cousins is about all the cousins who come together during their annual family reunion. As soon as they get to the party, havoc reigns. There are so many cousins that the neighbors complain that they are too rowdy at the creek. They are running around all day, get muddy, eat on the go, until nighttime…when it’s finally quiet.

This book has a decidedly southern feel. The cousins play in the creek and look for crawdads. In the illustration, there is an alligator in one of the creek scenes. The illustrations are caricature-like and just look like a hot summer day. I really like the glow in the dark scene, where it’s dark outside, but everything is lit up by fireflies and stars. The illustrator did a great job bring the authors words to life.

There are several messages in this story. The ones that stand out to me the most are that families can be big and crazy. The illustrator did a subtle job portraying a multicultural family that was not stated anywhere in the text. Young readers will laugh out loud at some of the crazy cousins and what they do. This would be a good book to share during family units, with an emphasis on extended family. This would make for a good read aloud because of some of the difficult words, but students would enjoy the opportunity to look closely at the pictures because there is so much detail. This is a good purchase for a school library.

I personally found it interesting that Crum is a local author who has worked at Holly High School, teacher in English; South Lyon District Library, library director; Ann Arbor District Library, children's librarian, storyteller and manager of Northeast Branch Library; Washtenaw Community College, instructor in English. Writer. ( )