Perfectly Percy by Paul Schmid (review)

Little Percy, younger brother of Pearl of Hugs from Pearl (BCCB 1/12), absolutely loves balloons. Since he’s a porcupine, this is a problem: “HAPPY little porcupines with balloons are soon SAD little porcupines. The balloons always go POP! And Percy’s happiness pops with them.” Percy is determined to find a solution, however, and after a false start or two, he’s got it: an upended cereal bowl makes a fine helmet, covering his uppermost prickles and thus keeping his balloons (relatively) safe. Sure, there may not be much substance to this plot, but Percy’s can-do approach to problem solving is a useful model for little ones, and he’s an endearing protagonist. Schmid’s pencil and Photoshop illustrations are stunning in the simplicity of their compositions, with the porcupine figures (white bodies with black pencil line quills radiating outward) skillfully posed against solid pastel backdrops, while slight, smudgy white halos around the black pencil outlines add further eye-pleasing contrast. The sight of wide-eyed, pink-nosed little Percy sadly contemplating his collection of deflated balloons (each with a quill stuck through them) or smiling triumphantly with the still-dripping bowl on his head will provoke plenty of porcupine love and sympathy from child and adult readers alike. While this could prompt a brainstorming session for a problem-solving lesson (“What else could Percy try to keep his balloons safe?”), or be happily combined with the aforementioned Hugs for Pearl, Percy also stands alone quite well on his own little feet.