Refugees forced to find a new home—sadly, an always timely subject—deserve better storytelling than this
Polar bears find refuge on a tropical island paradise.
Three polar bear friends find themselves adrift on the “big blue ocean” when their ice-floe home cracks apart. Initially unconcerned, they entertain themselves, but then night comes and they grow worried. Spotting land, they ask the three Holsteins on the island if they can come ashore but are turned away—they are “too bear-ish.” Still at sea, with their bit of ice growing smaller, they encounter another island inhabited by a single panda. The panda does not want them either; the island will be too crowded with three more critters. Tea-drinking giraffes reject their pleas also. At last, they encounter an empty island where they can lounge and play games. And when a boatload of monkeys sails by, the polar bears bid them “WELCOME!” Barroux’s tale is perhaps meant to send a caution about global warming, but the message falls short with the antics of the animals. Finally finding a home after what is supposed to be a catastrophe and then playing ball and sunbathing just does not flow properly. The colorful, full-bleed art features bears and giraffes with stylized, oddly shaped snouts; the panda’s and the monkeys’ faces look startlingly puglike in contrast.
Refugees forced to find a new home—sadly, an always timely subject—deserve better storytelling than this . (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0444-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2016
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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