Wordplay and engaging images are joined expertly to a theme of love and compassion without treacle.
Everyone, including prickly hedgehogs, needs some bodily contact with another animal or human.
Many of the animals that Hedgehog will encounter are pictured even before the story begins in a woodland scene opposite the copyright page. If that hasn’t, the first full double-page spread immediately draws readers in, as lush browns and greens show the hedgehog in “his cozy nest” looking out toward the forest. Each picture is painted from a different perspective, making this an exciting visual experience. The story itself is one that has been told before: An animal seeking love and physical contact asks everyone in the forest to give him a hug. Due to Hedgehog’s sharp spines, Rabbit and Raccoon decline. Turtle just sleeps through the request. Fox agrees but then “sly-slide-slinking over” grabs the small animal in its mouth (and immediately regrets the act). Finally Hedgehog meets the other pariah of the forest, Skunk, who seems to be experiencing the same problem, and readers may guess the ending. The language is just right for the audience: a repetitive refrain (“ ‘Rabbit, I need a hug. Will you give me one?’ he asked”) and some appealing wordplay (“Hedgehog took a deep breath and tip-patter-padded close to Skunk”). The short text reads well aloud.
Wordplay and engaging images are joined expertly to a theme of love and compassion without treacle. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 19, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5247-3712-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
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
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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