A magical, wholesome Christmas read.
In this picture book, two boys plan to catch Santa’s elves on Christmas Eve when they deliver new sets of pajamas.
Santa’s elves are on a mission to give all the good children of the world not toys, as one might expect, but new pairs of pajamas. Through the use of a magical crystal ball, Santa’s elves check to make sure children are taking their baths on Christmas Eve, and then they leave a brand new set of pajamas just outside the bathroom door. But brothers Jack and Ben are determined to finally catch an elf. They concoct a daring plan to capture one through traps and a net, luring it with cheese and using their dog as a lookout. However, the boys prove no match for the mischievous elves, who cause quite the mess—squeezing out toothpaste and hair gel and ransacking bedrooms. Ben eventually runs outside in the cold wearing only a towel, which he promptly loses. Luckily, his brother is there to return it. The story is written using a simple rhyming structure, which adds a musical touch: “This Christmas Eve gift / is amazing, that’s true. / But the boys know what’s / coming: Elf hullabaloo!” Colorful illustrations vividly bring the action to life through detailed characters and elaborate backgrounds. The elves, hidden on all the pages (at the end of the book, the authors ask readers to count all the elves they’ve spotted), have playful, impish smiles, and where text appears, touches of red and green and holiday decorations adorn the pages. The downside of the rhyme scheme is its impact on dialogue: No dialogue tags are used, and two speakers are often found in the same stanza, so it can be unclear who’s speaking. While the text is sparse on action—the only exciting scene being Ben chasing the elves outside—the charming illustrations make up for the lack of plot.
A magical, wholesome Christmas read.Pub Date: Oct. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-1482724622
Page Count: 40
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
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It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property.
Since a reformed Grinch is hardly any fun, this follow-up Grinches him up once more.
Those seeking more of the same, prepare to receive precisely that. Christmas is coming (again!), and the Grinch can hardly wait. He’s been patient all year, and now he can finally show the Whos down in Who-ville how much he’s changed. When the Grinch learns of a tree-decorating contest, he figures that if he wins, it’ll prove he truly has the Christmas spirit. He throws himself into the task, but when it comes time to judge the trees, the Grinch is horrified to discover that he’s received only the second-place trophy. Can Cindy-Lou Who find the words to save the day? Replicating many of the original beats and wordplay of the original, this tale feels like less a sequel and more like a vaguely rewritten variation. Meanwhile, Ruiz’s art seeks to bridge the gap between the animated Chuck Jones version of the Grinch and the one depicted in the original book. This thankless task results in a strange uncanny valley between Seuss and Jones but does allow the artist a chance to colorize everything and lend some racial diversity to the Who population (Cindy-Lou is light-skinned). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593563168
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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