Absolutely charming—no subterfuge about that.
The Franklin brothers are on a mission, and it’s called Operation Lollipop—but while the two boys execute their plans to liberate a lollipop from a kitchen cupboard, it seems another member of the Franklin household is out to foil the plan.
Franklin Brothers Investigations—the other FBI—are working to recover a coveted lollipop after bedtime. They’ve drawn a map, planted booby traps, and selected rendezvous points to keep from being caught by their parents, who are just steps away from the prize. The two brothers use walkie-talkies and a tablet to keep in contact while one stays upstairs and the other executes the mission. At the final checkpoint, though, the secret agent realizes that he’s been double-crossed when Secret Agent Girl (aka their sister) and the family dog retrieve the candy instead. This adorable bedtime book can be read to the tune of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” and the meter and rhyme are perfect. The illustrations are full of action and easter egg–like details readers will enjoy finding night after night. Some of those cute details include the magnifying glasses on the secret agent’s pajama pants, the child’s drawing of the family that reveals the third sibling, and the sister secret agent’s own “lollipop plan” on her bedroom floor. The family appears to be mixed race, the father and children presenting with brown skin and dark brown hair, mom with white skin and light hair. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Absolutely charming—no subterfuge about that. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: May 11, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6921-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
A joyful if simplistic celebration of Chinese New Year culture.
A kid tries to catch a good-luck dragon hiding around town as the family prepares for Chinese New Year following the formula established in How To Catch an Elf (2016) and other series installments.
After hearing Mom wish for a dragon to bring health and fortune for the new year, a boy (presumably Chinese) and several friends (of varying racial presentations) discover a dragon lurking about town. Among the Chinese-style architecture of the town buildings, they employ various fantastical lures related to Chinese culture to catch it, including a web of noodles and sticky rice, a giant red lantern, gold coins, and a dragon dance. The simple and often awkward rhyming quatrains leave no room for deeper insights into Chinese culture, but each stanza does include one or two highlighted words whose Chinese translation can then be found within the illustration. The entire text is translated into Simplified Chinese with Pinyin in the backmatter for cross-referencing. Elkerton’s digitally painted, colorful cartoon illustrations depict a diverse cast of modern-looking children against a backdrop of a traditional Chinese village. Ultimately, despite the protagonist’s failure to catch the dragon, it is being within the embrace of a loving family (depicted as a mother and a grandmother) that is the luckiest of all.
A joyful if simplistic celebration of Chinese New Year culture. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-9369-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Sure to assuage the fears of all astronauts bound for similar missions.
A genius way to ease kids into the new adventure that is kindergarten.
In an imaginative ruse that’s maintained through the whole book, a young astronaut prepares for his mission to Planet Kindergarten. On liftoff day (a space shuttle–themed calendar counts down the days; a stopwatch, the minutes), the small family boards their rocket ship (depicted in the illustrations as the family car), and “the boosters fire.” They orbit base camp while looking for a docking place. “I am assigned to my commander, capsule, and crewmates.” Though he’s afraid, he stands tall and is brave (not just once, either—the escape hatch beckons, but NASA’s saying gets him through: “FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION”). Parents will certainly chuckle along with this one, but kindergarten teachers’ stomach muscles will ache: “[G]ravity works differently here. We have to try hard to stay in our seats. And our hands go up a lot.” Prigmore’s digital illustrations are the perfect complement to the tongue-in-cheek text. Bold colors, sharp lines and a retro-space style play up the theme. The intrepid explorer’s crewmates are a motley assortment of “aliens”—among them are a kid in a hoodie with the laces pulled so tight that only a nose and mouth are visible; a plump kid with a bluish cast to his skin; and a pinkish girl with a toothpick-thin neck and huge bug eyes.
Sure to assuage the fears of all astronauts bound for similar missions. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: May 20, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4521-1893-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
