The Books

Roxaboxen

by Alice McLerran
Illustrated by Barbara Cooney

One Potato Review

Imagine: an entire civilization built by children out of rocks and sticks and bushes in the desert. Nothing very dramatic happens in this story. A lizard dies. Kids dress up, grow up. The prose itself is slower and reflective; you can’t shout out “Roxaboxen!” at the earliest signs of distraction. Is this a book meant for more “experienced” readers? For girls? Let’s hope not. A lot of cowboy-loving, rattlesnake-wrestling little boys are probably missing out, and it may finally be too late by the time they’re lining up to watch The Transformer Movie.