A charming introduction to the meaning and value of childhood dreams.
A child’s big, blue fluffy dream fills Vidalón’s book.
The sentient, smiling dream gives Penelope a sense of meaning and purpose in life, and in return, Penelope takes good care of it. As Penelope’s dream develops it grows so big that it begins to overwhelm Penelope’s life: It is too big to fit in cars, can’t get through doorways, and gets in the way of play dates. Penelope’s friends laugh at the size of her dream, which leaves her feeling embarrassed, so she decides to leave her dream in her bedroom from then on. Still, Penelope looks forward to seeing her dream at the end of each day. Soon the dream, feeling neglected, starts to shrink. One day Penelope comes home and can’t find her dream. She searches everywhere, finally finding the tiny blue puffy ball hiding in her dresser drawer. Penelope decides to again make room for her dream in her daily life no matter what people say. The author never explains exactly what Penelope’s dream is, nor whether it represents a specific life goal or simply a sense of hope: “After all, we all have a dream….” This ambiguity invites young readers to explore their own dreams and identify what they care about and why. The author’s own illustrations of Penelope with her fair skin and her cloudlike dream are bold and colorful, and the text is straightforward, occasionally employing fun typography for emphasis.
A charming introduction to the meaning and value of childhood dreams.Pub Date: March 20, 2023
ISBN: 9798987991404
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A disappointing follow-up.
Inventor Izzy Gizmo is back in this sequel to her eponymous debut (2017).
While busily inventing one day, Izzy receives an invitation from the Genius Guild to their annual convention. Though Izzy’s “inventions…don’t always work,” Grandpa (apparently her sole caregiver) encourages her to go. The next day they undertake a long journey “over fields, hills, and waves” and “mile after mile” to isolated Technoff Isle. There, Izzy finds she must compete against four other kids to create the most impressive machine. The colorful, detail-rich illustrations chronicle how poor Izzy is thwarted at every turn by Abi von Lavish, a Veruca Salt–esque character who takes all the supplies for herself. But when Abi abandons her project, Izzy salvages the pieces and decides to take Grandpa’s advice to create a machine that “can really be put to good use.” A frustrated Izzy’s impatience with a friend almost foils her chance at the prize, but all’s well that ends well. There’s much to like: Brown-skinned inventor girl Izzy is an appealing character, it’s great to see a nurturing brown-skinned male caregiver, the idea of an “Invention Convention” is fun, and a sustainable-energy invention is laudable. However, these elements don’t make up for rhymes that often feel forced and a lackluster story.
A disappointing follow-up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-164-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
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