A cozy, nonthreatening preschoolers’ introduction to some honeybee basics.
A little boy who enjoys observing honeybees has a magical adventure with them.
The narrator, a pale-skinned tot with close-cropped black hair, sits on an overturned flowerpot, gazing at the bees flying in and out of a bright blue hive. Inexplicably but delightfully, two bees have brought him an itty-bitty bee suit that shrinks him to “the size of a teeny-weeny honeybee.” Bella and Beatrice usher him past the guards and into the hive, which is dark but “smell[s] LOVELY.” Scaling the comb, he observes workers feeding beatifically smiling larvae, meets the Queen, and witnesses the waggle dance that, Bella informs him, “shows us where to find flowers.” Following a brief flight—his suit is equipped with tiny wings—he helps his friends gather strawberry nectar and dandelion pollen. Taking the suit off restores him to his full size, and the next day he thoughtfully “plant[s] lots of seeds and flowers” for his new friends. Readers accustomed to Voake’s flowing ink-and-wash paintings will note a departure here; these illustrations are constructed out of cut paper embellished with her familiar brushy lines. The focus is on whimsy rather than verisimilitude—these bees have just four legs, for instance—but this is a fantasy, after all. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A cozy, nonthreatening preschoolers’ introduction to some honeybee basics. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5362-2045-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree.
A Christmas edition of the beloved alphabet book.
The story starts off nearly identically to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989), written by John Archambault and the late Bill Martin Jr, with the letters A, B, and C deciding to meet in the branches of a tree. This time, they’re attempting to scale a Christmas tree, not a coconut tree, and the letters are strung together like garland. A, B, and C are joined by the other letters, and of course they all “slip, slop, topple, plop!” right down the tree. At the bottom, they discover an assortment of gifts, all in a variety of shapes. As a team, the letters and presents organize themselves to get back up on the Christmas tree and get a star to the top. Holiday iterations of favorite tales often fall flat, but this take succeeds. The gifts are an easy way to reinforce another preschool concept—shapes—and the text uses just enough of the original to be familiar. The rhyming works, sticking to the cadence of the source material. The illustrations pay homage to the late Lois Ehlert’s, featuring the same bold block letters, though they lack some of the whimsy and personality of the original. Otherwise, everything is similarly brightly colored and simply drawn. Those familiar with the classic will be drawn to this one, but newcomers can enjoy it on its own.
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665954761
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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