Readers can have a monstrous good time, and not just at Halloween.
If readers think they know everything about monsters, they can guess again.
By checking out this zany field guide–like offering, monster mavens will learn lots about these creatures or enlarge their store of knowledge about them. Under the expert tutelage of professors Batula McFang, Blobbins, and Howlsworth and abetted by brains-loving Tina the Zombie, all of whom gamely escort readers through these pages, kids will pick up salient facts about monsters. These include types, diet, biology, habitats, history, and more—including tidbits about what monsters themselves fear the most and what they get up to under some people’s beds! The text’s silly conversational tone is comically tongue-in-cheek and should convince skittish younger readers that the book is meant to evoke chuckles, not shrieks. However, some slightly gross references may elicit an eww or two and/or, perhaps, a mild frisson of delighted shivers. Actual text is kept to a minimum per page, with charts, sidebars, and diagrams breaking up wordiness and heightening visual appeal. The lively, very colorful illustrations are imaginative and filled with raucous details that kids will love poring over. This title’s use in libraries may be limited by a full-page chart that resembles a checklist for kids to fill in and a removable “Monstronomy Diploma” at the end of the book.
Readers can have a monstrous good time, and not just at Halloween. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-12280-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
This frenetic ode to fatherhood is predictable fare but may please series fans.
It’s time to look for the elusive Daddysaurus.
In this latest installment in the seemingly never-ending series about a group of diverse kids attempting to trap mythical creatures, the youngsters are now on the lookout for a big mauve dinosaur with an emblazoned D on his stomach and a superhero cape. The fast-moving Daddysaurus is always on the go; he will be difficult to catch. Armed with blueprints of possible ideas, the kids decide which traps to set. As in previous works, ones of the sticky variety seem popular. They cover barbells with fly paper (Daddysaurus like to exercise) and spread glue on the handle of a shovel (Daddysaurus also likes to garden). One clever trick involves tempting Daddysaurus with a drawing of a hole, taped to the wall, because he fixes everything that breaks. Daddysaurus is certainly engaged in the children’s lives, not a workaholic or absent, but he does fall into some standard tropes associated with fathers. The rhyming quatrains stumble at times but for the most part bounce along. Overall, though, text and art feel somewhat formulaic and likely will tempt only devotees of the series. The final page of the book (after Daddysaurus is caught with love) has a space for readers to write a note or draw a picture of their own Daddysaurus. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
This frenetic ode to fatherhood is predictable fare but may please series fans. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-72826-618-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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