Marcel the Shell With Shoes On

October 3, 2011
Like the popular Internet video it’s based on, this picture book stars a pink-shod, one-eyed snail shell who is happy to discuss his habits, preferences, and inner life, while revealing a life that’s both miniature and writ large. Slate, an actress, and Fleischer-Camp, a director, wisely expand Marcel’s world beyond the three-and-half minutes of their video, though they hang onto some of its most beloved lines. The artwork trades the jerky animation of the original for Lind’s thick, luminous oil paintings, which provide a fittingly off-kilter realism; when readers first get a (very) close-up view of Marcel through a magnifying glass, his mouth agape and single goggle-eye gleaming, it’s clear that this is not your average protagonist. In deadpan narration, Marcel shows readers his home (“This is my Breadroom. It’s a Bedroom. But I sleep in a piece of bread”) and nearby attractions like the aquarium (a goldfish bowl) and a toy-filled amusement park. True, you don’t get to hear Marcel’s singular squeaky/scratchy voice, but the hip, young parents buying (and perhaps most excited about) this adaptation will be itching to try out their impressions. Ages 5–up.

October 15, 2011
A perky anthropomorphic shell named Marcel introduces readers to his highly original universe in this quirky spin-off from the 2010 Stop Motion animated short film of the same name. With one large eye, a mouth and a pair of scuffed red-and-white shoes, univalve Marcel confidently asserts, "I like myself." Speaking in the first person, present tense, Marcel isn't afraid to express himself. He loves where he lives, sleeps between two pieces of bread known as his "Breadroom" and often visits the "aquarium" (a goldfish bowl). Which amusement ride is he afraid to go on? The salad spinner. What's his favorite ride? The ladle. How does he dry off? Dives into the sock drawer. What does he use as a helmet when scaling a high-heeled sandal? A pistachio shell. Created from a series of multicolor paintings resembling fuzzy interior photographs, clever illustrations serve as strikingly realistic backdrops for Marcel with his fantastical props and playthings, providing visual clues about the actual scale of his diminutive world. Like a camera lens, illustrations zoom in and out on Marcel, confidently perched atop books, dragging his lint dog on a hair leash, standing defiantly beneath a toilet bowl or tucked into his Breadroom as he revels in his one-of-a-kind life. The sky's the limit for this winning, winsome, wee mollusk. (Picture book. 5 & up)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

December 1, 2011

Gr 1-3-Elegantly illustrated but sadly lacking in story or relatable humor, this picture book about the daily life of an odd-looking seashell with eye and shoes (essentially someone's pet rock) falls flat. Marcel narrates, showing readers his "breadroom" (inexplicably, he sleeps on a piece of bread inside a potted plant), his monuments (baseball trophies), his least favorite amusement-park ride (the salad spinner), and his substitute for a pet dog (a piece of lint leashed to a hair). The book's funniest moment-when Marcel watches a movie and enjoys a "large popcorn" with his grandmother-is as stale as the single piece of popcorn that Marcel is posed with. The other attempts at humor will register with neither children nor adults. Marcel himself is a less-than-endearing protagonist with his one, oversize googly eye and plastic Ken doll shoes. Lind's warm and beautifully lit paintings invite readers into a glowing domestic scene, but kitschy Marcel seems jarringly profane and out of place in them. Though Fleischer-Camp's hand-drawn cursive lettering gives the package an intimate, artistic quality, it will be nearly indecipherable for some readers. The line drawings seem to echo the loose zaniness of Maira Kalman's work, but her carefree delivery and more compelling choice of subject matter hit the mark where Marcel's creators flail. Like a child with an imagined universe built around a favorite toy, the authors seem more charmed with their creation than audiences will be.-Jayne Damron, Farmington Community Library, MI

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 15, 2011
Grades K-2 Marcel, the tiny, pink-shoed, one-eyed shell from the 2010 award-winning viral video hit, would like to take you on a tour of his home. Confidentand comfortable in his oversize world, Marcel shares with readers his favorite activities like climbing a sandal once a year and helping himself to a large popcorn at the movies, which to discerning eyes is one large kernel. Sweet, yet fierce and charmingly exuberant, Marcel's final farewell will send kids to bed without much fight. Painted renderings of photographs seamlessly incorporate Marcel in each scene, creating great scale shots of the tiny tour guide. The softness of the lines lend a dreamlike quality, but the feel is realistic as Marcel sits among everyday objects like softball trophies and slices of bread. Slate, once a member of the Saturday Night Live cast, and Fleischer-Camp should knock it out of the park with Marcel's anticipated TV show, so look for requests once it hits the airwaves.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2012
From YouTube hit to children's book: Marcel the Shell humorously describes his Borrowers-esque life (e.g., he jumps into a sock drawer to dry himself off). Eschewing stills, this spin-off book uses realistic paintings that retain the hipster charm that helped make the videos so popular. Fans will miss Slate's quirky voicing of Marcel, but they can hear her narrate the book online.

(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)