Very clever in concept and execution.
A sloth and an interfering fox vie for control of the book.
Lento, a sloth, strides across the opening page, announcing, “This is MY BOOK,” but before there’s time to tell the story, a “little nap” intervenes. Seizing the moment, Fox boldly swings across the gutter on a rope, challenging the inert Lento for the book’s ownership, yelling, “You snooze, you lose, sloth,” initiating instant rivalry. Ignoring Lento’s claim that Fox and his takeover are not part of the script, Fox insists the book needs a more dynamic lead character. Protesting vehemently, Lento proceeds to compete with Fox to prove who’s the best lead. Lento yodels. Fox blasts out of a canon. Fox soars in a hot air balloon only to be felled by Lento in a plane. Warning Fox in an O.K Corral–style showdown that “this book ain’t big enough for the both of us,” Lento devises a plan to get Fox out of the book—maybe. Presented in bold, individualized type in the dialogue-only text, Lento and Fox’s contest to control the book becomes the story. Their hilarious, attention-getting, action-filled antics play out in simple, eye-catching red, green, yellow, black, and white shapes and backgrounds. Slow Lento’s distressed, anguished, and determined expressions and body language prove the perfect foil for nimble Fox’s mercurial demeanor, outrageous behavior, and arrogant bravado.
Very clever in concept and execution. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68464-065-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends.
Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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