Splinters Book

Cindy Winters loves to play hockey. When her family's basement apartment is flooded and the floor freezes, she's even happy to skate on the concrete. Her parents are too poor to enroll her in a league, but she's resourceful and does odd jobs until she has earned enough money to play. Armed with her mother's old equipment, she is thrilled to join a team. But her happiness doesn't last long. Among her teammates are the horrible Blister Sisters. They make her life miserable. And worse, Cindy's sidelined by the coach, who just happens to be Mrs. Blister. It looks like she'll be spending the season cleaning equipment, instead of playing on the ice. Cindy's luck changes when her Fairy Goaltender appears and saves the day. With its great good humor and hilarious illustrations, Kevin Sylvester's Splinters is bound to become a favorite.

Children's Literature

Cindy loves to play hockey. And she plays well, on frozen ponds, and even over cement when her flooded basement freezes. Because her family is poor, Cindy works hard at any job she can find to earn the money needed to join a real team in the hockey league. Using her mother's old equipment at her first practice, the Blister sisters, whose mother is the coach, ridicule her; then she is sent to the bench. At a tryout for an all-star hockey team, of course the coach sends the sisters. In tears, Cindy despairs. Then, in this unusual twist to the Cinderella story, her Fairy Goaltender magically appears to help her. The magic continues as, clothed beautifully, Cindy stuns the judge, Coach Prince (!) at the tryouts. But forgetting the fairy's warning, all falls apart at the buzzer as Cindy leaves one new skate behind. And of course it fits only her, for the happy ending, as Cindy and Coach Prince know they will "love hockey happily ever after." Pencil and watercolors naturalistically create Cindy's character and moods, as well as the leering sisters, their mother, the goal tender and locker room. As in the original fairy tale, the contrast between good and evil is apparent. A handsome poster decorates the back of the paper jacket. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz