Youngsters who are constantly told to hush will love how a little character’s big voice makes all the difference.
A small cat and a little girl stop a crime in this illustrated tale.
Mouse, a tiny gray feline with huge ears and a big voice, never seems to meow when her family can appreciate it. Instead, she does so during television shows and breakfast time, and when everyone wants to sleep. But Little Liz understands what it’s like when others don’t listen; instead of telling Mouse to “hush,” like everyone else, Liz listens, and Mouse listens to her. One day, when Mouse hears an unusual noise in the kitchen, she tries to get her people’s attention. Only Liz responds, and they discover burglars. Mouse saves the day with a house-shaking meow, keeping the crisis in Benishek’s (The Squeezor Is Coming!, 2018, etc.) story from becoming too scary. (The cat-burglar team also includes actual cats, which heightens the silliness.) Mouse’s perpetual cheer, even in the face of being told to hush, comes through in Young’s (Angel on Assignment, 2018, etc.) color illustrations, which show Liz to be an irrepressible youngster with dark skin and curly brown hair. The parallels between Mouse (who “hadn’t grown into her ears yet”) and Little Liz (who “hadn’t grown into her eyes yet”) are also cleverly expressed.
Youngsters who are constantly told to hush will love how a little character’s big voice makes all the difference.Pub Date: June 11, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-387-83056-5
Page Count: 24
Publisher: MacLaren-Cochrane Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 25, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A nice but not requisite purchase.
A retelling of the classic fairy tale in board-book format and with a Mexican setting.
Though simplified for a younger audience, the text still relates the well-known tale: mean-spirited stepmother, spoiled stepsisters, overworked Cinderella, fairy godmother, glass slipper, charming prince, and, of course, happily-ever-after. What gives this book its flavor is the artwork. Within its Mexican setting, the characters are olive-skinned and dark-haired. Cultural references abound, as when a messenger comes carrying a banner announcing a “FIESTA” in beautiful papel picado. Cinderella is the picture of beauty, with her hair up in ribbons and flowers and her typically Mexican many-layered white dress. The companion volume, Snow White, set in Japan and illustrated by Misa Saburi, follows the same format. The simplified text tells the story of the beautiful princess sent to the forest by her wicked stepmother to be “done away with,” the dwarves that take her in, and, eventually, the happily-ever-after ending. Here too, what gives the book its flavor is the artwork. The characters wear traditional clothing, and the dwarves’ house has the requisite shoji screens, tatami mats and cherry blossoms in the garden. The puzzling question is, why the board-book presentation? Though the text is simplified, it’s still beyond the board-book audience, and the illustrations deserve full-size books.
A nice but not requisite purchase. (Board book/fairy tale. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7915-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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