Competent coverage of a sadly underrepresented holiday.
On the Islamic holiday of Eid al-Adha, Peg + Cat practice math and kindness.
Peg, a white girl with strawberry-blonde hair, and Cat, a purple feline, visit their friends Yasmina, a beige-skinned girl wearing a hijab, and Amir, a light-brown–skinned boy wearing a suit and tie with sandals. Eid al-Adha is a “very special holiday” that Peg and Cat “had never even heard of.” Following the signature Peg + Cat formula, they first “rock out” in song. Since Eid al-Adha is about “giving to those with less,” the less than/more than mathematical symbols are introduced. The four characters play musical instruments, and Yasmina piles a silver tray with foods. Following Islamic tradition, they separate the meat into thirds: one-third for the family, one-third for neighbors and friends, and one-third for charity. Amir places two meatballs on each plate, but Peg notices that the meatballs are different sizes. This is a “Big Problem,” which they solve with a pan balance. Finally, they head out to the party. When they stop at the soup kitchen to donate some meatballs, they use math again to help out there, and when Cat shares his coveted honey cakes, he discovers how good it feels to give. The illustrations (assembled from the TV episode the book is based on) are cartoony and colorful, with graphing paper and mathematical equations in the background. Fans of Peg + Cat will enjoy learning about the Islamic holiday, but readers unfamiliar with the show may not appreciate the book’s formulaic structure.
Competent coverage of a sadly underrepresented holiday. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: June 26, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9932-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick Entertainment
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018
A forgettable effort that fails to capture any of the magical charm of Santa’s story. (Picture book. 3-6)
Wallace and Elkerton continue their series about catching elusive mythical creatures (How to Catch a Leprechaun, 2016, etc.) with this Christmas story about an elf who must avoid traps constructed by children before Santa’s annual visit.
The unnamed elf narrator is the sole helper traveling with Santa on his delivery rounds on Christmas Eve, with each house featuring a different type of trap for elves. The spunky elf avoids a mechanical “elf snatcher,” hidden in a plate of cookies, as well as simple traps made of tinsel, double-sided tape, and a cardboard box concealing a mean-looking cat. Another trap looks like a bomb hidden in a box of candy, and a complicated trap in a maze has an evil cowboy clown with a branding iron, leading to the elf’s cry, “Hey, you zapped my tushy!” The bomb trap and the branding iron seem to push the envelope of child-made inventions. The final trap is located in a family grocery store that’s booby-trapped with a “Dinner Cannon” shooting out food, including a final pizza that the elf and Santa share. The singsong, rhyming text has a forced cheeriness, full of golly-jolly-holly Christmas spirit and too many exclamation marks, as well as rhyming word pairs that miss the mark. (No, little elf-boy, “smarter” and “harder” do not rhyme.) Bold, busy illustrations in a cartoon style have a cheeky appeal with a focus on the freckle-faced white elf with auburn curls and a costume with a retro vibe. (Santa is also white.)
A forgettable effort that fails to capture any of the magical charm of Santa’s story. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4631-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
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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