An indulgence for Mother Goose die-hards.
Wolfie is an orange cat who dreams of cake—never mind the chocolate frosting!
Unfortunately the cake in question is destined for Little Red’s grandma, should the book follow the “Little Red Riding Hood” plot (and it does). After Little Red, a White child with short ginger hair who wears a red, hooded jacket, bakes and frosts a cake with the help of Big Red, a bearded adult with matching hair and skin, a game of cat and mouse ensues in comic-book–style spreads and panels. Cautious of being caught in pursuit, Wolfie dodges several looks back from Little Red, hiding alongside various images of cats passed along the way. Without narrative text, the book relies on Mother Goose and Brothers Grimm references to hold the visual interest, as a child being followed by a cat doesn’t really demand the nearly 64 pages it takes up. For those well versed in nursery rhymes, storefronts like Humpty Dumpty Insurance, Gingerbread Gym, and Mary Q. Contrary Florist may earn a chuckle, but the only real fun is in finding all of Bo Peep’s “lost” sheep—often not far from one of her flyers. In a low-stakes climax, Wolfie is outwitted by Grandma and Little Red, who kindly share their cake after a lighthearted prank. Just in case the story—or lack thereof—didn’t drag on long enough, readers can follow the pair all the way home again (jiggety jig) and into bed. A key to fairy tales and rhymes referenced—and the rhymes themselves—appears at the back. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An indulgence for Mother Goose die-hards. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-358-31510-0
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2021
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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