A zingy original tale for children needing a brush-up on clock-reading, schedule-keeping—or the perils of hanging out with five frisky monkeys. Crocodile stubbornly tries to adhere to his neatly typed schedule: “2:00. Shop for food. 3:00. Bath and snack. 4:00. Catch those pesky monkeys. 5:00. Cook those pesky monkeys . . . ”—but to a chorus of the title question, his simian tormenters continually distract him by fooling around, and ultimately throw a spanner into the works of his tractor-like monkey-catching machine. In the wake of the ensuing wreck, Crocodile suffers a change of heart, and amends his schedule: “Play catch with those pesky nice monkeys.” Giving his art a rougher, less-finished look than usual, Cushman puts a clock-face in each scene, captures the monkeys’ energy without leaving the pages looking over-busy, and pairs with Sierra’s lively text—“What TIME is it, Mr. Crocodile? Time to shop where it’s smart at the Crocodile Mart. / How did all these BANANAS get into my cart?!?”—to make any time the right time for this irresistible rhyme. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-15-216445-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Gulliver/Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2004
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note.
Little Honey Bunny Funnybunny loves baseball almost as much as she loves her big brother P.J.—though it’s a close-run thing.
Readers familiar with the pranks P.J. plays on his younger sibling in older episodes of the series (most illustrated by Roger Bollen) will be amused—and perhaps a little confused—to see him in the role of perfect big brother after meeting his swaddled little sister for the first time in mama’s lap. But here, along with being a constant companion and “always happy to see her,” he cements his heroic status in her eyes by hitting a home run for his baseball team and then patiently teaching her how to play T-ball. After carefully coaching her and leading her through warm-up exercises, he even sits in the stands, loudly cheering her on as she scores the winning run in her own very first game. “‘You are the best brother a bunny could ever have!’” she burbles. This tale’s a tad blander compared with others centered on P.J. and his sister, but it’s undeniably cheery, with text well structured for burgeoning readers. The all-smiles animal cast in Bowers’ cartoon art features a large and diversely hued family of bunnies sporting immense floppy ears as well as a multispecies crowd of furry onlookers equally varied of color, with one spectator in a wheelchair.
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note. (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 6, 2026
ISBN: 9798217032464
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-689-81175-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1998
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