Title: Zappity Zip, Just That Quick!
Author: Judi Schleppenbach
Illustrations by: Cynthia McManigal
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 976-1-5144-1062-2
Pages: 32
Genre: Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure
Reviewed by: Barbara Miller
Pacific Book Review
“Zappity Zip, Just That Quick!” by author Judi Schleppenbach begins and ends so quickly I wanted more! I was totally immersed in this fanciful dreamlike voyage of a little girl named Aria, whose adventurous curiosity gets the best of her one day at home. As she wanders into her Grandma’s room, she picks up a magical stick which was told to her to be forbidden for her to play with. As she twirls around holding the stick, she finds herself transported to different places around the world, each filled with local people celebrating in their own custom. As dance is the universal language, Aria takes part and once she does, she again gets transported to a new place, with people she does not recognize.
From Ireland, to an American Indian reserve, to Brazil, then China and many more exotic places, each destination is a brief moment of bewilderment as Aria seeks to find out just what is going on. Then, “Just that quick,” she’s off to a different place, as this story moves quickly around the globe. As a picture is worth 1,000 words, each of the locations is artfully drawn by artist and illustrator Cynthia McManigal. You can tell she and Judi Schleppenbach collaborated on this book more so than most authors and illustrators. “Zappity Zip, Just That Quick!” is also adorned with an original song written by Diane Olsen, making this book a potpourri of talent and imagination. A book which transcends the genre and enters a classification of art, the adventure of Aria will undoubtedly ring in bewilderment and open the eyes of children reading or being read this book. Ideal for bedtime, the story and the minutia of details embedded in the drawings will captivate and lull children off to the dreamland which was experienced by Aria. They too will travel the world and meet cultures and people from so many different places, yet realizing we are all very much alike – loving to celebrate the joys of life with the friends and families of our villages. Music, in particular a drumbeat, is also a universal language to be instantly perceived as a festive engagement of social behavior.
Noticing the border of the galley text in fact acts to guild the book with the obvious pride all of those who contributed to this work of art. The concept of a dreamlike voyage adds an element of credibility to the character Aria, and brings the reader back gently to the chair from where her journey began. Touched on the shoulder by her Grandmother upon awakening, she isn’t scolded for venturing into the box containing the magical stick, but rather loved and encouraged to join the family in a local celebration right in their own village – the Little Italy district of New York City.
Yes, where ever in the world you go, there will be people which look different, play music differently, and dance to different drummers, yet we are all a part of humanity which is the magic of this book. “Just that quick,” it begins and ends. “Bravissimo” to Judi Schleppenbach as she conducted all of her colleagues in a splendid performance culminating in this literary work of art.
