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LITTLE RED’S SUMMER ADVENTURE

Name: LITTLE RED’S SUMMER ADVENTURE
Author: Sarah Ferguson
ISBN: 0-689-85562-1

by Sarah Ferguson & illustrated by Sam Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2006

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Ferguson returns to the bucolic splendor of Little Red and Little Blue’s world in this third addition to the series. The two children, along with their menagerie of feathered and furry friends, are preparing for a summer festival and boat show, the highlight of which is a surprise transformation of Red’s wagon using a magical key. However, when the key is snatched, Little Red and her pals must work together to solve the problem—with a little magical assistance from within Red’s sack of smiles. Ferguson maintains a light and airy tone throughout the tale, where even the most vehement expletive—shouted out by Little Blue—is the phrase “Coconut cupcakes!” Williams’s pencil-and-watercolor illustrations are awash in vibrant summery hues. His detailed paintings neatly capture the fey, otherworldliness of the Buttercup Cottage community and inhabitants. Captivating depictions of the activities provide plenty of material for young readers to linger over. Ferguson’s sweetly innocent tale, filled with whimsy, is the perfect antidote to high-tech overload and just the thing to share with little ones. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: July 1, 2006

ISBN: 0-689-85562-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2006

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
BALLERINA ROSIE
by Sarah Ferguson illustrated by Diane Goode

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE RED
by Sarah Ferguson & illustrated by Sam Williams

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)