A misbehaved mule gets an etiquette lesson in Edwards’s (Little Brown Hen’s Shower, p. 410, etc.) humorous tale. “What would you do if a mule knocked on your door one day and said ‘I’ve come for lunch?’ ” asks the opening spread. “You’d say, ‘Hello! Come in, Mule.’ ” But rudeness ensues as the mule resists his host’s suggestions, then throws a tantrum when he doesn’t get his way. Each time, the boy waits patiently until his guest acquiesces. (“What if he came in and sat down at the table? You’d say ‘Mule, wash your hooves before lunch.’ But what if he said ‘Won’t!’ You’d say, ‘No lunch for you then.’ ”) Nascimbeni’s (Small Brown Dog’s Bad Remembering Day, 2000, etc.) saturated mixed-media illustrations provide vivid accompaniment as the meal gets progressively messier. A full-bleed illustration steeped in heady tones of tomato red and rust orange depicts the mule slurping spaghetti. Curly noodles loop through the air as the boy nearly falls off his seat. Opposite, a vignette shows the boy standing up to the horrible house guest (“Mule, eat your food quietly”). By the end, a series of vignettes shows the pair riding a toy train, playing hide and seek, blowing bubbles, and, finally, taking a nap—the rewards of proper behavior. For fans of Laura Numeroff’s Mouse stories (below), Edward’s effort may seem like déjà vu. But by making her host cool as cucumber and totally in charge, Edwards gives her tale a twist. It’s Emily Post for the preschool set, an appealing and laugh-inducing introduction to civilized living. (author’s note on mules) (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-8050-7007-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts.
In this latest slice in the Food Group series, Humble Pie learns to stand up to a busy friend who’s taking advantage of his pal’s hard work on the sidelines.
Jake the Cake and Humble Pie are good friends. Where Pie is content to toil in the background, Jake happily shines in the spotlight. Alert readers will notice that Pie’s always right there, too, getting A-pluses and skiing expertly just behind—while also doing the support work that keeps every school and social project humming. “Fact: Nobody notices pie when there’s cake nearby!” When the two friends pair up for a science project, things begin well. But when the overcommitted Jake makes excuse after excuse, showing up late or not at all, a panicked Pie realizes that they won’t finish in time. When Jake finally shows up on the night before the project’s due, Pie courageously confronts him. “And for once, I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it.” The friends talk it out and collaborate through the night for the project’s successful presentation in class the next day. John and Oswald’s winning recipe—plentiful puns and delightful visual jokes—has yielded another treat here. The narration does skew didactic as it wraps up: “There’s nothing wrong with having a tough conversation, asking for help, or making sure you’re being treated fairly.” But it’s all good fun, in service of some gentle lessons about social-emotional development.
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780063469730
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
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