Pleasantly predictable, this quiet adventure breaks no new ground but offers a charming diversion for cat (and library)...
Like many of his predecessors, the striped feline star of this story finds a happy home at his local library.
The twist, this time around, is that Homer already has a home in a “quiet house” with a “quiet lady” when a loud noise startles him into jumping out the window. The action moves quickly, as Homer tries out the post office (too sneezy), the fire house (too busy) and a boxcar at the train station (too loud) as alternatives. He next dashes into the local library, where he’s pleased and surprised to recognize his owner—and vice versa. A big hit with the kids, Homer winds up spending his days at the library, napping in the stacks. The simple rhyming text follows an abcb pattern and conveys the action clearly. The sing-song rhythm gives the story an old-fashioned feel that’s complemented by Wilsdorf’s appealing watercolor-and-collage illustrations of a small-town Main Street. Curious listeners may wonder about the noise that started Homer’s adventure, as it is explained in neither text nor illustration. Touches of visual humor brighten the low-key tale and provide plenty of details to pore over. Homer is especially engaging, particularly on the endpapers, where he’s shown in a variety of poses, almost always smiling widely.
Pleasantly predictable, this quiet adventure breaks no new ground but offers a charming diversion for cat (and library) lovers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3448-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Sept. 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2011
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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