by Bob Hartman and illustrated by Jacqueline East ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2009
Troll loves to hide under the playground equipment at The Traditional Academy for Small Furry Animals and the Odd Mythical Creature and jump out at his fellow students to shake them down: “[R]each in your pocket / And give me your stuff!” He thinks the skinny new kid is going to be an easy mark, but the little goat puts him off; his older brother has a bigger briefcase, of course. And so it goes, until the biggest brother gives Troll a delicious comeuppance. East’s watercolors depict a big green bully with tusky underbite against a generic schoolyard background. The fun’s in the text, which will make for a good fractured–fairy-tale read-aloud in many an elementary classroom. (Picture book. 6-10)
Pub Date: July 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7459-6023-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Lion/Trafalgar
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2009
Share your opinion of this book
More by Aesop
BOOK REVIEW
by Aesop & adapted by Bob Hartman & illustrated by Jago
BOOK REVIEW
by Bob Hartman & illustrated by Tim Raglin
by Daymond John ; illustrated by Nicole Miles ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 21, 2023
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
Share your opinion of this book
by Doreen Cronin & illustrated by Harry Bliss ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2005
The wriggly narrator of Diary of a Worm (2003) puts in occasional appearances, but it’s his arachnid buddy who takes center stage here, with terse, tongue-in-cheek comments on his likes (his close friend Fly, Charlotte’s Web), his dislikes (vacuums, people with big feet), nervous encounters with a huge Daddy Longlegs, his extended family—which includes a Grandpa more than willing to share hard-won wisdom (The secret to a long, happy life: “Never fall asleep in a shoe.”)—and mishaps both at spider school and on the human playground. Bliss endows his garden-dwellers with faces and the odd hat or other accessory, and creates cozy webs or burrows colorfully decorated with corks, scraps, plastic toys and other human detritus. Spider closes with the notion that we could all get along, “just like me and Fly,” if we but got to know one another. Once again, brilliantly hilarious. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-000153-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Joanna Cotler/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2005
Share your opinion of this book
More by Doreen Cronin
BOOK REVIEW
by Doreen Cronin ; illustrated by Brian Cronin
BOOK REVIEW
by Doreen Cronin ; illustrated by Brian Cronin
BOOK REVIEW
by Doreen Cronin ; illustrated by Betsy Lewin
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.