This agreeable tale is the second Duck and Hippo story; more would be welcome.
Duck, Hippo, and three friends celebrate the end of summer with a picnic.
Turtle, Elephant, Pig, and Duck have all brought something to share—but Hippo forgot. Determined to have something to share, he sets off to pick the last sweet berries of the season. When he doesn’t return after a short time, the others worry he is lost and go looking for him. By then it is so dark they resort to calling for him, but at first he doesn’t answer. And when he does, it sounds like a cry for help! Finally the moon comes out, and there is Hippo, safe and sound, with five berries under his hat to share. The bright, cheery illustrations have a buoyant, cartoon style that animates the story. Hippo is jauntily dressed in a seersucker jacket, red bow tie, and hat; Elephant wears a madras shirt and shorts with suspenders; Pig wears a blue-and-white–striped dress; Duck has a red coat and carries a yellow polka-dot umbrella; and Turtle sports an orange cap. Playful type and wordplay add to the amusement. Children are unlikely to feel any anxiety as these friends bumble along in the dark, so calm and good-hearted is the story. Friendship stories are plentiful, and outdoor adventures are not unusual, but this lively lark is a picnic basket full of fun.
This agreeable tale is the second Duck and Hippo story; more would be welcome. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5420-4562-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: April 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2017
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
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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