Stunning, jewel-toned illustrations in gouache and chalk pastel on mixed-media paper bring a young boy’s imagination to life in this riveting tale. Left on his own on a hot day when the other villagers would rather be napping, Pocu finds a peacock feather in the forest and waves it, creating an imaginary playmate. The first wave makes the air cool; the second makes the flowers bloom; and the third creates “a great murmuring shadow” that speaks, asking for eyes, paws, body, tail, and stripes. The somnolent swishing of the feather in the dark forest coupled with the shadow’s seemingly innocent requests lull readers into the game; but soon the shadow reveals its true identity: a fierce, hungry tiger. Pocu is frightened until he remembers to use his feather. Each wave this time removes claws, paws, and tail, until Pocu finds himself alone again; now it is suppertime and he can go back to the village and join his family. Soft-focus illustrations in intense jades, blues, and browns evoke the deep forest setting; the peacock feather in a shimmery rainbow of colors stands out brightly. The tiger, first nothing but a dark swish, grows into a huge orange creature; the spread showing its ferocious face with its bared fangs is terrifying. Those who have scared themselves thinking about what might be lurking in the basement, in the attic, or out in the woods, will recognize the fun of make-believe fright as well as the welcome realization that the same force that created them can tame the beasts of the imagination. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-399-22633-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2002
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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