A soothing and appealing read-aloud, this lovely look under the sea may spark scientific curiosity in listeners.
A gray whale and her calf migrate from south to north in this British import.
As in Weaver’s debut, Little One (2016), luminous charcoal illustrations reveal and enhance a loving relationship between an animal mother and (non–gender-specific) child. Double-page spreads in varying shades of blue show the mother and calf swimming past coral reefs, over waving fronds of seaweed, through schools of fish, under a starry sky, and on and on through the vast sea on their journey home. The monochromatic pages sparkle with sunlight, evoke the watery sway of plant life, and capture the vastness of the open ocean as appropriate. A pod of orcas provides a frisson of danger, the calf’s exhaustion a modicum of suspense, but overall the mood is serene. Imagined exchanges between Gray Whale and Little Whale will sound comfortingly familiar to both young listeners and adult readers. When the child/calf asks, “Are we nearly there?” the mother responds, “Not yet,” and offers encouragement to continue swimming. While the dialogue obviously anthropomorphizes the characters somewhat, the pictures provide a generally realistic view of the animals and their habitat. The straightforward text, which tracks their progress and describes the natural world through which they travel, likewise emphasizes the fact-based nature of the tale.
A soothing and appealing read-aloud, this lovely look under the sea may spark scientific curiosity in listeners. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-68263-049-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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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