Positive, uplifting, and unique.
Must a lion prince abandon his love of music to fulfill his destiny?
The cub scandalizes the other animals—not to mention his father—with his musical ambitions. After all, “a REAL lion ought to hunt. And also roar LOUDLY and EXPRESSIVELY!” The lion’s father shoots down his son’s dreams, compiling a list of what a “real” lion should do (in addition to being “honest,” “brave,” and “serious,” real lions “maintain a regal silence” and “observe carefully”). The cub, dejected, walks off in the rain, playing his instrument (“Oh, how sad it is when no one UNDERSTANDS you”). A turning point comes when the lion’s music helps rescue a fox pup; lost in the underbrush, the fox hears the swells of music and rushes out. At last, the lion’s father realizes that his son can be both a musician and a great leader. Loosely drawn, light-infused images with a slightly retro feel show animals typical to the African savanna—an elephant, a zebra, a giraffe, and gazelles. The lions walk upright but are clearly identified by their orange coats and spiky manes. Both text and artwork are playful (the list of virtues that the father creates will induce giggles), bringing whimsy to a familiar story. While the message is evident, the story is choice-affirming rather than pedantic. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Positive, uplifting, and unique. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-63655-038-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Red Comet Press
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
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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