Well-defined modeling of good citizenship.
A new bug comes to school; what will the other students do?
It’s the first day at a new school for an unnamed, ungendered green bug with spots. Outside the school log, one tall, magenta-colored bug introduces herself as Katydid and welcomes the newcomer. Other students react differently: One stares, another whispers, still another laughs—“but Katy didn’t.” Later, the teacher asks the new bug about the day. The responses are obvious: “ ‘Who welcomed you?’ / ‘Katydid!’ // ‘Who smiled at you?’ ‘Katydid!’ ” For each question, the new bug remembers a moment when Katy displayed this act of kindness. The culminating question sums up the importance of these acts: “ ‘Who made a friend today?’ / ‘Katydid!’ ” The text encompasses an entire day, maintaining symmetry and simplicity with repetition and concrete examples, helpful for young ones who are likely to encounter such social experiences. Importantly, it positions behavior expectations on the established students and not newcomers, modeling many different ways to be welcoming (and not). Lowery uses an animation-inflected style for the illustrations along with thick color gradients to create three-dimensional depth. Although the early pages have a heavy, shadowed appearance from the earth tones of the setting and the other bugs, the latter half is lighter and cheerful when the new bug’s school day memories are set against pastel backgrounds.
Well-defined modeling of good citizenship. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4413-3453-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peter Pauper Press
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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
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