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THE NO. 1 CAR SPOTTER AND THE FIREBIRD

Name: THE NO. 1 CAR SPOTTER AND THE FIREBIRD
Author: Atinuke
ISBN: 978-1-61067-052-4

From the No. 1 Car Spotter series , Vol. 2

by Atinuke illustrated by Warwick Johnson Cadwell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2012

A delightful immersion in an unfamiliar world for early chapter-book readers.

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In four connected short stories set in a tiny African village, No. 1 fulfills his dream of seeing a Pontiac Firebird up close and meeting its professor owner.

Oluwalese Babatunde Benson is not No. 1 at slingshot or at school, but he is excellent at identifying cars and is full of bright ideas. He's the one who dispatches the leopard with hot-chili-pepper soup, figures out a way to get stranded bus passengers across a flooded road and on their way, and finds a use for Mama Coca-Cola's too-hot new house. Underlying these simple stories are some significant cultural ideas. These villagers cooperate with each other, sharing their furnishings and their work. It’s not necessary to be No. 1 at more than one thing, Grandfather says. “That way we need one another.” The sharp corners, white plaster and corrugated iron roof of Mama Coca-Cola’s modern new house turn out to be wrong for the climate; it may be unhealthy to live in, but it's perfect for a restaurant serving both traditional and modern eaters. Cadwell’s grayscale cartoons add to the gentle humor of Nigerian-born Atinuke’s engaging, stand-alone sequel to The No. 1 Car Spotter (2011).

A delightful immersion in an unfamiliar world for early chapter-book readers. (Fiction. 7-11)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-61067-052-4

Page Count: 112

Publisher: Kane Miller

Review Posted Online: July 21, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
BETI AND THE LITTLE ROUND HOUSE
by Atinuke ; illustrated by Emily Hughes

- BOOK REVIEW
L IS FOR LOVE
by Atinuke ; illustrated by Angela Brooksbank

- BOOK REVIEW
TOO SMALL TOLA GETS TOUGH
by Atinuke ; illustrated by Onyinye Iwu

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THE TERRIBLE TWO

From the Terrible Two series , Vol. 1

by Mac Barnett ; Jory John ; illustrated by Kevin Cornell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 13, 2015

Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the Wimpy Kid.

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Miles used to live near the sea. Miles had friends. Miles was his school's greatest prankster...how will he survive a move to Yawnee Valley?

Yawnee Valley is famous for one thing: cows. All new students at Yawnee Valley Science and Letters Academy receive a booklet of 1,346 interesting cow facts from fussbudget fifth-generation principal Barry Barkin. On the first day of school, when Principal Barkin's car is found mysteriously parked on the school's steps, Barkin suspects Miles and assigns Niles Sparks to be Miles' buddy. Miles can't think of anything more awful than spending every moment of every day with smiling, officious, king-of-the-obvious Niles. On top of that, Barkin's son, Josh, has decided Miles is a good bullying target. To make life interesting, Miles plans a perfect prank in his pranking notebook, but it’s foiled. That's followed by an invitation to join forces in pranking from an unexpected source...no way! Let the prank war commence! Barnett and John launch their cow-resplendent illustrated series with the humorous origin story of the pranking duo who lend the series its name. Characters may be stock; however, the pranks are anything but, and it's peppered with cow facts. Cornell’s goofy cartoon illustrations (especially the blasé cows) add giggles aplenty.

Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the Wimpy Kid. (Fiction. 7-11)

Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-4197-1491-7

Page Count: 224

Publisher: Amulet/Abrams

Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
SANTA'S FIRST CHRISTMAS
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Sydney Smith

- BOOK REVIEW
THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE AND THE SOUP OF DOOM
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Shawn Harris

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW DOES SANTA GO DOWN THE CHIMNEY?
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Jon Klassen

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THE SINGING ROCK & OTHER BRAND-NEW FAIRY TALES

by Nathaniel Lachenmeyer ; illustrated by Simini Blocker ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 18, 2019

Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock”...

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The theme of persistence (for better or worse) links four tales of magic, trickery, and near disasters.

Lachenmeyer freely borrows familiar folkloric elements, subjecting them to mildly comical twists. In the nearly wordless “Hip Hop Wish,” a frog inadvertently rubs a magic lamp and finds itself saddled with an importunate genie eager to shower it with inappropriate goods and riches. In the title tale, an increasingly annoyed music-hating witch transforms a persistent minstrel into a still-warbling cow, horse, sheep, goat, pig, duck, and rock in succession—then is horrified to catch herself humming a tune. Athesius the sorcerer outwits Warthius, a rival trying to steal his spells via a parrot, by casting silly ones in Ig-pay Atin-lay in the third episode, and in the finale, a painter’s repeated efforts to create a flattering portrait of an ogre king nearly get him thrown into a dungeon…until he suddenly understands what an ogre’s idea of “flattering” might be. The narratives, dialogue, and sound effects leave plenty of elbow room in Blocker’s big, brightly colored panels for the expressive animal and human(ish) figures—most of the latter being light skinned except for the golden genie, the blue ogre, and several people of color in the “Sorcerer’s New Pet.”

Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock” music. (Graphic short stories. 8-10)