Sweet storytelling, with something perhaps lost in translation.
A young bat gets a bit greedy on a grocery store trip but eventually learns what truly matters.
As this story translated from French opens, Pascaline and her mother (anthropomorphic bats) are off to the forest supermarket. “It’s an amazing place, tucked inside a huge oak tree.” Charming illustrations, rendered in watercolor, pastel, pencil, and fluorescent pink crayon, depict the setting in a cross-section showing the various animals who go there to shop. Once inside, Pascaline ends up confusing needs with wants. She pleads for various items, all of which befit her chiropteran nature (“locust lollipops!” and “crispy crickets!” and “wing glitter!” and “sparkly slug slippers!”), and declares each the “best thing ever!” When her mother wisely doesn’t relent, a somewhat puzzling twist ensues as Pascaline’s “weeping and wailing” turns her into a sluglike creature. Transformed, she proves irresistible to a passing bluebird, who seizes her and flies away. She wriggles free while in flight over a field, drops to the ground, and meets some snails. After finding a shell to cover her slug body, she tags along with them, yet though she may look the part, she can’t agree that a lettuce leaf is the “best thing ever,” and she becomes homesick. All’s well that ends well when Pascaline is reunited with her mother, whose embrace is the “best thing ever,” after all. The adventure is enjoyably surreal, and the conclusion is heartwarming, though some readers may be confused by Pascaline’s transformation.
Sweet storytelling, with something perhaps lost in translation. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 19, 2024
ISBN: 9780500653623
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
A heartwarming story about facing fears and acceptance.
A boy with wings learns to be himself and inspires others like him to soar, too.
Norman, a “perfectly normal” boy, never dreamed he might grow wings. Afraid of what his parents might say, he hides his new wings under a big, stuffy coat. Although the coat hides his wings from the world, Norman no longer finds joy in bathtime, playing at the park, swimming, or birthday parties. With the gentle encouragement of his parents, who see his sadness, Norman finds the courage to come out of hiding and soar. Percival (The Magic Looking Glass, 2017, etc.) depicts Norman with light skin and dark hair. Black-and-white illustrations show his father with dark skin and hair and his mother as white. The contrast of black-and-white illustrations with splashes of bright color complements the story’s theme. While Norman tries to be “normal,” the world and people around him look black and gray, but his coat stands out in yellow. Birds pop from the page in pink, green, and blue, emphasizing the joy and beauty of flying free. The final spread, full of bright color and multiracial children in flight, sets the mood for Norman’s realization on the last page that there is “no such thing as perfectly normal,” but he can be “perfectly Norman.”
A heartwarming story about facing fears and acceptance. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: May 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-68119-785-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
Still, this young boy’s imagination is a powerful force for helping him deal with life, something that should be true for...
Oliver, of first-day-of-school alligator fame, is back, imagining adventures and still struggling to find balance between introversion and extroversion.
“When Oliver found his egg…” on the playground, mint-green backgrounds signifying Oliver’s flight into fancy slowly grow larger until they take up entire spreads; Oliver’s creature, white and dinosaurlike with orange polka dots, grows larger with them. Their adventures include sharing treats, sailing the seas and going into outer space. A classmate’s yell brings him back to reality, where readers see him sitting on top of a rock. Even considering Schmid’s scribbly style, readers can almost see the wheels turning in his head as he ponders the girl and whether or not to give up his solitary play. “But when Oliver found his rock… // Oliver imagined many adventures // with all his friends!” This last is on a double gatefold that opens to show the children enjoying the creature’s slippery curves. A final wordless spread depicts all the children sitting on rocks, expressions gleeful, wondering, waiting, hopeful. The illustrations, done in pastel pencil and digital color, again make masterful use of white space and page turns, although this tale is not nearly as funny or tongue-in-cheek as Oliver and His Alligator (2013), nor is its message as clear and immediately accessible to children.
Still, this young boy’s imagination is a powerful force for helping him deal with life, something that should be true for all children but sadly isn’t. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: July 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-7573-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
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