The Doorman

The Doorman

From School Library JournalKindergarten-Grade 4-John, an African-American doorman, plays a vital role in the lives of the inhabitants of a busy apartment building. He helps elderly Mrs. Klein into a taxi, jokes with the children in the lobby, holds packages, directs repair and delivery persons to their destinations, and even remembers young Nellie's birthday. Then one morning the tenants receive the sad news that John had a heart attack on the way home and died. "It's a shame that John had such a bad heart," says the bearer of the sad tidings. "He did not-He had a good heart," insists Nellie. The lengthy text and beautiful double-page watercolor paintings depicting such details as ornate moldings, a wood-paneled elevator, and sun-dappled, checkered tiles in a spacious foyer combine to give readers a glimpse of the daily lives of those who live in this elegant Manhattan building. It is John, seen in close-up proudly donning his cap, who seems to bring these disparate lives together. It would be interesting for readers to contrast this comfortable setting with that in Ezra Jack Keats's Apt. 3 (Aladdin, 1986).Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community College, CTCopyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.A hard-working doorman loves his job at the front of a big city apartment house, where he is especially dedicated to the elderly and young residents there, until the sad day when he is no longer there to greet his friends.From Publishers WeeklyThe highlight of this affectionate tribute to a New York City doorman is Lewin's (Peppe the Lamplighter) lifelike art. With nearly photographic clarity, his watercolors depict the comings and goings of an apartment house's residents and the daily routine of their beloved doorman, John. Setting the story in his own Upper West Side building, first-time children's author Grimm shapes a poignant portrait. Kind, conscientious John "felt responsible for everyone who lived thereAas if he were the captain of a ship." The doorman is especially fond of the elderly and very young tenants, because "they were the ones he could do the most for." Residents are shocked and saddened when John suffers a fatal heart attack, but his legacy lives on. Young readers lucky enough to know a doorman like John will appreciate the homage; non-city-dwellers may find the setting appealingly exotic. And observant kids will enjoy spotting Lewin and Grimm in cameo appearances (depicted as a painter and a tenant, respectively). Ages 4-7. (Sept.)Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.From BooklistJohn, the doorman in a big, old New York City apartment house, knows all the residents: he greets the children as they scoot off to school, gets a cab for an elderly person with a broken arm, and remembers that it's Nellie's birthday and her classmates and the cake will arrive later in the day. He makes sure mail and packages are taken care of and that repair people know where to go. He is a part of the lives of everyone in his building. The routine of life ends with great tenderness. One day John doesn't come; the tenants are told he has died. The residents mourn him, and his replacement wants to keep people feeling as "safe and happy" as John did. Grimm's conversational cadences are based on the true story of the beloved doorman of his own building, and Lewin's signature burnished colors get the ambience perfectly, right down to the telling details of John's blue and gold uniform, the lobby's marble floor pattern, and the children's animated faces. GraceAnne A. DeCandidoCopyright