A lightly wacky take on a valuable message.
A small child welcomes some unexpected visitors to Earth.
Tatulli’s second picture book (Daydreaming, 2016) opens upon the star-studded, black expanse of space as a small craft makes its way to Earth. The ship lands in a swirl of mystery, and throngs of people crowd around it, wondering “why did they come? What do they want? Why are they here?” And within moments, panic ensues. A police captain yells that they must be here to steal things; a news reporter insists that they came to take over TV shows in a grab for fame; and a military general warns that they came with the simple goal of taking the entire planet. Tatulli has an eye for visual perspective designed to heighten narrative tension as the lively illustrations capture the crowd’s rising frenzy of terror and intense protective measures. All of it comes to a striking standstill when Stephen Sprout, a small child known for his trepidation, calmly calls for order and gives his own sweet explanation for the aliens’ visit. The somewhat message-driven (though animatedly so) reminder of the potential harm and isolation that fear can drive us to is certainly timely, and a youthful voice of reason never goes out of style, even if Tatulli breaks little new ground. His humans are racially diverse; Stephen has light brown skin, brown hair, and blue eyes.
A lightly wacky take on a valuable message. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: July 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-62672-355-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2018
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
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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