Young readers will never think about vegetables the same way again.
Veggies aren’t just good for you: They know stuff, too.
Take the garden denizens who believe the strange red orb that lands among them is an alien tomato! A resident gopher thinks differently and tries vainly to change their minds. The vegetables wonder how to deal with the newcomer—is it dangerous?—and decide to be friendly and welcoming. Allie, the name they give the visitor, doesn’t respond. The gopher knows why, shouting with exasperation: “It’s just a red ball!” The veggies ignore the gopher and throw a party, giving Allie a crown. Under cover of night, the jealous rodent secretes Allie in its underground lair and hides the crown. The bewildered vegetables can only conclude Allie returned to her planet. Meanwhile, the gopher covertly plays with the “red ball” until…the final satisfying twist awards the gopher a comeuppance and proves the veggies right. This comical tale will captivate readers with its animated protagonists and surprising ending. The veggies zing with lively personalities and expressiveness, conveyed in both cartoon faces and speech bubbles, and the mammalian buttinski is a know-it-all hoot. The adorable illustrations of plant foods—broccoli, asparagus, peas, radishes, carrots, beans, and others—may encourage even greens-averse kids to think of them more positively (and, perhaps, try them). Allie is equally fun in “her” stolidity and in pulling off that who-would-have-guessed-it feat.
Young readers will never think about vegetables the same way again. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 14, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-62414-976-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: March 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
A must-own adaptation chock-full of such stuff as kids’ dreams are—and will be—made on.
Mirth, magic, and mischief abound in this picture-book retelling of one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays.
Ariel, the beloved sprite whose conjurings precipitate the eponymous tempest, gets top billing in this adaptation and recounts the narrative in the first person. Through Ariel’s eyes, readers are introduced to the powerful Prospero, his lovely daughter, Miranda, and the shipwrecked nobles who are brought to the island to right an ancient wrong. Ellinas’ picture book largely divests the tale of its colonialist underpinnings and breathes three-dimensional complexity into the major and minor characters. Caliban, for instance, is monstrous due to his callous treatment of Ariel rather than because he is racially coded as savage. Another delightful change is the depiction of Miranda, who emerges as an athletic, spirited, and beautiful nature-child whose charms are understandably irresistible to Prince Ferdinand. The text is perfectly matched by Ray’s jaw-droppingly beautiful illustrations, which will enchant readers from the front cover to the final curtain. The greens of the waters and the blues of the island’s night sky are so lush and inviting that readers will wish they could enter the book. Peppered throughout the story are italicized fragments of Shakespeare’s dialogue, giving both young and older readers something to enjoy. Large, granite-colored Caliban is plainly nonhuman; the human characters present white; Ariel is a translucent, paper white.
A must-own adaptation chock-full of such stuff as kids’ dreams are—and will be—made on. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1144-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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