The words of the traditional Christmas song are adapted here to reflect a Southwest theme, with influences from Latino and Native-American cultures. On the first day of Christmas, a grandmotherly animal of undetermined species looks out her kitchen window to see her amigos bringing her a piñata for her piñon tree. The three friends (a skunk, a pig and an armadillo) bring in more decorations and more animals as the days of celebration progress, right on up to an 11-member mariachi band and 12 raccoons drumming. Wolff’s busy, brilliantly colorful illustrations depict the huge cast of characters slowly filling up the town square as they celebrate. An additional illustration on the left fourth of each double-paged spread holds the text and shows the hands (paws?) of the grandmotherly animal baking Bizcochitos cookies step-by-step. That simpler scene helps to set off a calm spot on the pages. A recipe for these cookies and the music to the song with the rewritten words can be found on the endpapers, though those will be partially covered by the book jacket in library use. The final scene, a double page of glowing windows set in snowy mountains and facing the sparkling tree, is just plain breathtaking. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-316-82323-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2007
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
Turkey’s in the “kind of trouble where it’s almost Thanksgiving...and you’re the main course.” Accordingly, Turkey tries on disguise after disguise, from horse to cow to pig to sheep, at each iteration being told that he looks nothing like the animal he’s trying to mimic (which is quite true, as Harper’s quirky watercolors make crystal clear). He desperately squeezes a red rubber glove onto his head to pass as a rooster, only to overhear the farmer suggest a poultry plan B when he’s unable to turn up the turkey. Turkey’s horrified expression as he stands among the peppers and tomatoes—in November? Chalk it up to artistic license—is priceless, but his surroundings give him an idea. Good fun, but it may lead to a vegetarian table or two. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7614-5529-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2009
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