A fun tale for little ones while sitting around a campfire.
In Keres’ series picture book, two siblings have a silly fright during a family camping trip.
After a day of typical camping activities (including fishing) in a wooded area, two kids and their father try to sleep in their tents—but then they hear something out of the ordinary: a “moan, then a whine” and then “panting and wheezing.” Suddenly, the creature howls, and the moonlight reveals that the mysterious beast has big, scary claws. Maybe it’s a wolf or a bear—or possibly a sasquatch, they think. Should they climb a tree for safety? As the delightful rhymes, images, and comically illustrated onomatopoeias go by, young readers will be on the edge of their seats as they try to imagine what’s outside the tent. In the end, they see the monster’s true face and learn why it came for a visit. Young children are likely to be entertained by Keres’ succinct yet playful storytelling and Lin’s expressive, full-color cartoon illustrations. It’s the perfect book to bring on a family camping trip, as it presents a scary campfire story that won’t have kids losing sleep afterward. The family members are portrayed with pale skin.
A fun tale for little ones while sitting around a campfire.Pub Date: April 30, 2024
ISBN: 979-8989916016
Page Count: 39
Publisher: Buzzbook Press
Review Posted Online: July 6, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet notion that falls flat.
A hit song reimagined as a book about parental love.
Featured in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn—Part 1, Perri’s “A Thousand Years” deals with the speaker’s fear of romantic love. In picture-book form, it explores a parent’s unwavering love for a child, who grows from an infant into a toddler over the course of the narrative. The caregiver expresses awe when the youngster learns to stand and fear that the child might fall while beginning to walk. “I have spent every day waiting for you,” the parent says. “Darling, don’t be afraid.” What the child might fear isn’t clear from the joyful balloon- and rainbow-filled illustrations. The story borders on cloying, and words that might work when sung and accompanied by music don’t sound fresh on the page: “Time goes by. / You grow ever stronger as you fly.” The refrain, however, is a lovely sentiment: “I have loved you for a thousand years. / I’ll love you for a thousand more.” Perri’s legion of fans may flock to this version, illustrated by Ruiz with sparkling stars, bubbles, and big-eyed toddlers, but it doesn’t hold together as a narrative or an ode, as it’s billed, and it’s a long way from the original song. The child is tan-skinned, the parent is lighter-skinned, and other characters are diverse.
A sweet notion that falls flat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9780593622599
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
Give this child’s-eye view of a day at the beach with an attentive father high marks for coziness: “When your ball blows across the sand and into the ocean and starts to drift away, your daddy could say, Didn’t I tell you not to play too close to the waves? But he doesn’t. He wades out into the cold water. And he brings your ball back to the beach and plays roll and catch with you.” Alley depicts a moppet and her relaxed-looking dad (to all appearances a single parent) in informally drawn beach and domestic settings: playing together, snuggling up on the sofa and finally hugging each other goodnight. The third-person voice is a bit distancing, but it makes the togetherness less treacly, and Dad’s mix of love and competence is less insulting, to parents and children both, than Douglas Wood’s What Dads Can’t Do (2000), illus by Doug Cushman. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: May 23, 2005
ISBN: 0-618-00361-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2005
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