Readers definitely won’t sour on this sweet friendship tale.
Talk about opposites not attracting.
Sweet and Sour are pickles who don’t get along. They live on opposite sides of a fence, and their habits and dispositions are wildly different. Long and skinny Sour is slow; short and round Sweet is speedy. Sour is angry; Sweet is happy. Sour prefers the quiet; Sweet likes things loud. As for actual taste, Sour derives his flavor from vinegar and garlic; Sweet’s signature piquancy comes from having been prepared with “cinnamon and sugar and a bop of mustard seed.” Can these contrarians reconcile? Things improve after Sour throws a pool party and invites every pickle—except Sweet. Sour feels guilty when he peers over the fence and spies an angry-looking Sweet in a tiny wading pool. For his part, Sweet considers that maybe the pair aren’t so different and writes Sour a note asking to meet. They become friends, share pickle puns, and build a community where all pickles are welcome. Though many children may dislike pickles (or perhaps haven’t yet tasted them), they’ll feel reassured by this humorous story about opposites discovering commonalities and becoming friends. Young kids may not get the puns, but grown-ups can help with that. Emergent readers should find the simple text easy to navigate. The colorful illustrations are lively; the unconventional protagonists are engaging, their body language and exaggerated expressions speaking volumes.
Readers definitely won’t sour on this sweet friendship tale. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: July 30, 2024
ISBN: 9780374391447
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet notion that falls flat.
A hit song reimagined as a book about parental love.
Featured in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn—Part 1, Perri’s “A Thousand Years” deals with the speaker’s fear of romantic love. In picture-book form, it explores a parent’s unwavering love for a child, who grows from an infant into a toddler over the course of the narrative. The caregiver expresses awe when the youngster learns to stand and fear that the child might fall while beginning to walk. “I have spent every day waiting for you,” the parent says. “Darling, don’t be afraid.” What the child might fear isn’t clear from the joyful balloon- and rainbow-filled illustrations. The story borders on cloying, and words that might work when sung and accompanied by music don’t sound fresh on the page: “Time goes by. / You grow ever stronger as you fly.” The refrain, however, is a lovely sentiment: “I have loved you for a thousand years. / I’ll love you for a thousand more.” Perri’s legion of fans may flock to this version, illustrated by Ruiz with sparkling stars, bubbles, and big-eyed toddlers, but it doesn’t hold together as a narrative or an ode, as it’s billed, and it’s a long way from the original song. The child is tan-skinned, the parent is lighter-skinned, and other characters are diverse.
A sweet notion that falls flat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9780593622599
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
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