What begins as a routine chore literally takes a turn, with a satisfying and visually creative result. Stanley begins mowing his lawn, up and back, up and back, repeating until a critter, Hank the snake, causes Stanley to take pause, alter his course from a perfectly straight swath to a zig and a zag, inspired by the shape of the snake he’s discovered in the tall, green grass, and leaving Hank some grass as well. Frazier’s imaginative conceptual and graphic solution will appeal to younger and more sophisticated readers. Endpapers comprised of photo-realistic piled up cut grass in different shades of green create varying depth, light and color. Like Stanley, Frazier is hard at work, adding an artistic touch to his project. He interjects a play between the artist and the computer, creating the illustrations by hand and coloring them on the computer. Juxtaposition of straight and curved lines, light and dark, large and small shapes, varying perspectives and a hint of the surreal (kidney-shaped clouds) offer an engaging visual experience. The story concludes: “When Stanley finished mowing he looked at his lawn and he liked it, so did Hank.” And so will the reader. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-8118-4846-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2005
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
Turkey’s in the “kind of trouble where it’s almost Thanksgiving...and you’re the main course.” Accordingly, Turkey tries on disguise after disguise, from horse to cow to pig to sheep, at each iteration being told that he looks nothing like the animal he’s trying to mimic (which is quite true, as Harper’s quirky watercolors make crystal clear). He desperately squeezes a red rubber glove onto his head to pass as a rooster, only to overhear the farmer suggest a poultry plan B when he’s unable to turn up the turkey. Turkey’s horrified expression as he stands among the peppers and tomatoes—in November? Chalk it up to artistic license—is priceless, but his surroundings give him an idea. Good fun, but it may lead to a vegetarian table or two. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7614-5529-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2009
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