A sympathetic exploration of the dance between agency and anxiety in conquering a common childhood fear.
In this Danish import, a child is certain there’s a monster in the attic.
Creepy monster faces and claws border some of the pages, show up in shadows, and are visible to the young narrator when the child’s eyes are closed. Most of the monochromatic settings are rendered in gray-browns. A few details appear in color: the youngster’s pinkish face and ruddy cheeks, small objects. Despite the menacing beasts conjured in the child’s imagination, there are cozy retreats, and although the mother admits that her offspring’s monster drawing is pretty scary, she explains that the overhead noise is just an animal “building a hidey-hole.” Their conversations contain wry humor. When invited to investigate, the child is too busy. “ ‘Busy doing what?’ Mom asks. ‘Something.’ I say.” Ultimately, the protagonist braves the steps to discover a pleasant space with “fun things.” The parent unearths a trumpet to add to the child’s one-man-band attempts to drown out the offending sounds. The concluding garret scene reveals a small pink monster mirroring the pose in the child’s drawing. The creature is wearing a striped shirt, spotted pants, and horned hat, just like the protagonist—food for thought. Birkjær’s portrayal of a supportive mother (who never panders) and Juul’s visual narrative depicting emotional growth in a subtle, inventive manner—starting with the contrasting endpapers—offer a refreshing departure from stories with similar themes. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sympathetic exploration of the dance between agency and anxiety in conquering a common childhood fear. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2023
ISBN: 9781945492747
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Transit Books
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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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