Ages 3^-8. Written as a song for children, the rhymed and nearly rhymed text of this glowing picture book tells its own story simply: a family of grandparents, parents, and four children gather to make a dinner of chicken and dumplings, green beans, and strawberry shortcake. Grandma turns on the radio, and everyone pitches in, dancing to the music while chopping carrots, cleaning beans, and keeping the cat and the baby amused. It is utterly cheerful and winning: the whole family, taking a note from the 1980s Bangles pop song, troops into the kitchen walking sideways like ancient Egyptians. At another point, everyone dances around the baby with kitchen gear (colanders and bowls and cheese graters) on their heads. The text's playfulness is fully realized in the paintings, which have the beautiful matte colors and curved cutout shapes of a Matisse. Priceman, who illustrated the 1996 Caldecott Honor Book Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin, has planned her spreads as carefully as Matisse's Red Studio. In one, the curve of Mama's royal blue dress as she tosses beans into a pot echoes the curve of the cat dancing by Papa's feet. Bold patterns--stripes and plaids and swirls on the clothing and calligraphed lines on the furniture and woodwork--make the book dance, too. GraceAnne A. DeCandido
From Kirkus Reviews
Spices don't have to come from jars - this family flavors its cooking with promenades and pirouettes. When the grandparents, parents, and children gather to make a meal, the first ingredient is music: ``Dancin' in the kitchen/The family's packed in tight/I think we may be/Dancin' in the kitchen all night.'' Priceman's illustrations are a bright salsa of mango, olive, blueberry, and tomato, and the stirring, dipping, mixing, and waltzing of the characters are contagious. Sometimes the rhyme is a little stodgy, but for families who like to have both the radio and the stove on high, this book cooks. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
