Tranquility, camaraderie, and gooey marshmallows add up to one sweet combo.
Longing to experience winter, a brown bear named Hiro shares a frosty evening with a newfound human friend.
Despite her parents’ warnings about the perils of the season, Hiro’s determined to find out about it for herself. She sneaks out while her family is hibernating and is enchanted by what she sees. Drawn to noises in the forest, Hiro happens upon a party. A chaotic multipage sequence depicts children in brightly colored winter gear scampering away. Only Émile, a pale-skinned child clad in a puffy coat that mirrors the color of Hiro’s fur, remains. In delightfully surreal style, the two sit companionably, comparing their lives before concluding that “being a bear or being an Émile is pretty much the same, in the end.” They leave for home, content. Like the marshmallows the pair bond over, this quietly meditative Belgian import is worth savoring; the tale is filled with delectable sensory imagery, from Hiro’s brothers who “wallow in honey-sweet dreams” to the “tiny white confetti” that falls from the sky. The warmly rounded, matte-colored mixed-media illustrations have a theatrical feeling, keeping the focus on Hiro’s emotional journey. Pages alternate between vignettes surrounded by copious white space and expansive full-bleed spreads, such as a dark, cozy page where the friends gaze at each other, wearing party hats the color of the fire.
Tranquility, camaraderie, and gooey marshmallows add up to one sweet combo. (Picture book. 4-9)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780802856326
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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