My Pen

PreS-Gr 2—Whether it's giving form to a young artist's imaginings or providing comfort in the face of that same kid's worries, a simple pen can be a powerful tool. A young boy named Aurelio offers observations on his pen's abilities that range from serious to sweet, and from fanciful to frank. It all adds up to his belief that his pen "can do anything, anywhere," and that there is strength in his use of art and writing to record his thoughts and feelings. The audio performance gets off to a bumpy start. The muddled overlapping voices of Myers and actor Dion Graham reading words embedded in the illustration on the copyright page is disconcerting and confusing. But beyond that, the production soars. Myers's narration is smooth as silk. Illustrative sound effects (sloshing waves, beeping cars, trumpeting elephants) and background music by film composer Chris Kubie give extra depth to both Myers's narration and his black-and-white sketches.