Bland fare for bed jumpers, but the point about shared responsibility is a good one to make—blunted though it is by the...
If the bed won’t break with a bison bouncing on it, surely a few smaller animals won’t do any harm…will they?
“The bed starts to BEND. / The bed starts to SHAKE. / I really hope the bed won’t BREAK!” And it doesn’t—not even when first Aardvark and then Chipmunk climb aboard. But when Beetle bounds in, bedroom disaster ensues. This is followed by a round of finger-pointing that ends when a previously hidden grizzly bear rises from under the coverlet to blame all four and send them scurrying to make repairs. Though Bright gives the bearish climax a big buildup, Chatterton opts to present the grizzly in the cartoon illustrations in thoroughly unscary pajamas, bearing a tiny teddy bear and just a mildly irritated expression. And, when the bed’s fixed, the bear’s small frown suddenly changes to a grin as he invites one and all to join him in a fresh round of bouncy “FUN!” Bright genders the grizzly as male, but aside from stereotypical pink bow and eyelashes on Beetle, there are no other gender markers in the book.
Bland fare for bed jumpers, but the point about shared responsibility is a good one to make—blunted though it is by the ending. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-68010-006-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
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
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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