For children who appreciate clever and silly puns (Picture book. 4-8)
One potato, two potato, three potato, four. Five potato, six potato, seven potato, more—more potato puns than you can count, as a young spud strives to win the sack race at the Spud City Festival.
After training all year to win the Golden Bushel Award, Chip learns he must beat Curly, the new spud in town. From pre-race to finish, Breisacher and Heinsz use their setup to share verbal and brightly colored visual puns that children will enjoy. The race begins at the corner of Russet Boulevard and Fry Avenue. Couch potatoes—resting on a couch, of course—line the race route. The Waffle Fries can’t decide whom to root on. First Chip is in the lead. Then Curly speeds past. After Curly trips, the way is clear for Chip to win. Instead he offers Curly a hand up, and they race toward the finish line together. Chip doesn’t win, but he gains a friend, and Chip and Curly team up for the relay. Maybe that coveted Golden Bushel Award is within reach after all. All characters are potatoes illustrated in a range of (potato-y) skin tones. However, both Chip and Curly are male, and only the Sweet Potato cheerleaders are explicitly coded as female (with pink skirts and pompoms). The book’s raison d’être is the wordplay, with Home Fries, Tater Tots, and Twice Bakes joining the cast of characters and a spud-centric attitude toward verbs: These taters “wedge,” “whip,” “hash,” “pancake,” and “peel,” all leading up to the moment when “Chip’s dreams of winning [are] mashed.”
For children who appreciate clever and silly puns (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-58536-408-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
A colorful conversation starter about what heroism can mean.
In this picture book from former congressman and U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard officer Kinzinger, a father shows his child that heroes are found everywhere.
Christian is excited to learn that his class will be presenting about heroes in their lives. He knows exactly who he’s going to talk about: his father, an Air Force pilot. When Christian’s friend Ella declares that she will present on their teacher, Ms. Betty Jo, Christian is confused. Heroes protect people, like his father does, but Ms. Betty Jo “didn’t protect anyone.” When Christian tells his father that no one else in his class knows a real hero, Dad takes the boy on a trip in his single-engine plane. Christian observes different workers as his father explains their heroism in verse. The text switches back to prose as they land at a military cemetery, where Dad places a flag at the tombstone of a friend. Vibrant, episodic illustrations give the story momentum, while the detailed vignettes provide a good opportunity for young readers to discuss what’s happening in situations that call for doctors, police, 911 dispatch, the National Guard, and lifeguards, among others. Brief backmatter presents facts about some of the institutions and people who inspired the illustrations. Christian and Dad are pale-skinned; other characters are diverse.
A colorful conversation starter about what heroism can mean. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 5, 2026
ISBN: 9781400252725
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tommy Nelson
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
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