Safe to stay home from this trip.
An explorer visits an island of fantasy animals in this Quebecois import translated from French.
Amelia’s off on an expedition. She’s a grown-up, but when she was little, her grandfather found an unusual island and told her about it. He went only once, and she too can go only once: À la Brigadoon, it’s accessible for a single day every 50 years. Amelia’s knowledge of the island comes from her grandfather, who’s invoked repeatedly. Frequent exclamation marks (“She’s smiling so hard that her cheeks hurt!”) don’t enliven the bland present-tense prose or successfully force excitement. The island’s mythical fauna thrill Amelia, but while they’re conceptually whimsical—merbears, hedgemunks, howlverines, koalaroceroses—both the animals and the setting are pale and lackluster. For an island with “intense heat,” scents of vanilla and nectar, colors that “overwhelmed” Amelia’s grandfather, and “beauty [that’s] astonishing,” the low-intensity hues are watery and washed-out, and repetitive background patterns evoke wallpaper. Amelia, like her grandfather, holds the title of “doctor,” but her trip emphasizes delight, not research. Given that, and given the implied tropicality of the island, the whole piece has a whiff of colonialist tourism: Amelia and her grandfather both carve their initials into a tree; the island has a “real name” they never learn; and Amelia presents White. Her grandfather, shown only in black and white, has a swarthy complexion.
Safe to stay home from this trip. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4598-2523-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Dec. 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Warm but underdone.
In this picture book from actor Gyllenhaal and his partner, Caruso, a child and his uncle bond on a fantastic journey.
Leo, an avid dancer, is dismayed when Uncle Mo visits—he’s in town for a “rubber band convention.” Illustrations show both with wavy brown hair and light tan skin. Not only does Leo think his uncle is rather dull, he’s also leery of Uncle Mo’s many rules. A rather abrupt narrative shift occurs when the pair inexplicably drive into another dimension. Here they encounter Great-Aunt Gloria (who is very tall and presents Black) and Uncle Munkle Carbunkle (who is very short and light-skinned), who guide them through the Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles. Unimpressed with Uncle Mo, Great-Aunt Gloria says he must take a quiz on “Auntieology and Uncleology.” After several wrong answers, Uncle Mo has a final chance at redemption: He must state his nephew’s favorite activity. When Leo springs into action to dance for his clueless uncle, a mishap leaves him mortified and un-bespectacled. Enter Uncle Mo to save the day by using a rubber band to secure Leo’s glasses. While Santat’s energetic illustrations do much to clarify the narrative, they can’t fully make up for the disjointed storytelling—it’s never clear why the two have entered this dimension or why Leo is suddenly so eager to help Uncle Mo. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Warm but underdone. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781250776990
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
A delicious triumph over fear of night creatures.
Pippa conquers a fear of the creatures that emerge from her storybooks at night.
Pippa’s “wonderfully wild imagination” can sometimes run “a little TOO wild.” During the day, she wears her “armor” and is a force to be reckoned with. But in bed at night, Pippa worries about “villains and monsters and beasts.” Sharp-toothed and -taloned shadows, dragons, and pirates emerge from her storybooks like genies from a bottle, just to scare her. Pippa flees to her parents’ room only to be brought back time and again. Finally, Pippa decides that she “needs a plan” to “get rid of them once and for all.” She decides to slip a written invitation into every book, and that night, they all come out. She tries subduing them with a lasso, an eye patch, and a sombrero, but she is defeated. Next, she tries “sashes and sequins and bows,” throwing the fashion pieces on the monsters, who…“begin to pose and primp and preen.” After that success, their fashion show becomes a nightly ritual. Clever Pippa’s transformation from scared victim of her own imagination to leader of the monster pack feels fairly sudden, but it’s satisfying nonetheless. The cartoony illustrations effectively use dynamic strokes, shadow, and light to capture action on the page and the feeling of Pippa's fears taking over her real space. Pippa and her parents are brown-skinned with curls of various textures.
A delicious triumph over fear of night creatures. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5420-9300-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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