Though the interactive features are nondescript, this sweet, simple story may spur a valuable conversation or two about...
This tiny tale about individuality aims to encourage kids to be exactly who they are—without apology.
Morris, a diminutive mouse, doesn’t squeak like the others. In fact, he doesn’t squeak at all. One might say he’s multilingual. Morris is a one-mouse barnyard, making the sound of a different animal (as well as a couple of other objects) every time he opens his mouth. With each “quack,” “vroom” or “cock-a-doodle-doo,” his fellow rodents become increasingly determined to fix him. They’re definitely not comfortable with his abnormal way of communicating. All the while, Morris doesn’t seem fazed; he just keeps on being…Morris. Tactile interactions are minor, mostly triggering slight animations. Little ones can find and collect cheese wedges to unlock a “record” feature, which allows them to do voice-overs on the sounds. Once the recordings are complete, readers have two versions of the story: the original and a personalized edition that inserts the recordings into the narrative (hint: recording begins after the countdowns, not before). At the end of the story, a cat shows up; when Morris barks like a dog, the cat scampers away, never to return. Suddenly, his quirky linguistic style is seen as an asset, and he wins the affections of his former detractors.
Though the interactive features are nondescript, this sweet, simple story may spur a valuable conversation or two about nonconformity. (Requires iOS 6 and above.) (iPad storybook app. 3-6)Pub Date: Feb. 11, 2014
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Digital Leaf
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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