bookshelf

THE BEE TREE

Name: THE BEE TREE
Author: Stephen Buchmann
ISBN: 978-0-938317-98-2

by Stephen Buchmann & Diana Cohn & illustrated by Paul Mirocha ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2007

bookshelf

In Malaysia, the yearly wild-honey hunts take place on moonless nights when the bees can’t see the men who climb the tualang, the tall bee trees. The hunters take special care not to upset the ecosystem that supports the giant honey bees, since the pollinating keystone species affects many of the plants and animals of the region. The authors and illustrator watched as a traditional hunter Pak Teh and his grandson, Nizam, ascended the tall ladders, lit the flames that scare the bees away for a few hours and harvested the honey from the heavy combs attached to the tree limbs. They turned their unique experience into a fictional picture book with a coming-of-age theme filled with wondrous double-spread paintings, depicting daily life today in a Malaysian village (the boy wears a T-shirt with an “All Stars” slogan; the grandfather wears traditional clothing), the rich rainforest, the legends of the honey bees and the stages of the honey hunt. The story is replete with authentic details, but the fascinating factual backmatter (written in a more adult tone and printed in a smaller typeface) and inclusion of small paintings from the artist’s sketchbook and photographs should have been presented in a more accessible format. (Picture book. 7-11)

Pub Date: May 1, 2007

ISBN: 978-0-938317-98-2

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Cinco Puntos Press

Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2007

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

bookshelf

THE BAD GUYS

From the Bad Guys series , Vol. 1

by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 3, 2017

We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face.

bookshelf

Four misunderstood villains endeavor to turn over a new leaf…or a new rap sheet in Blabey's frenzied romp.

As readers open the first page of this early chapter book, Mr. Wolf is right there to greet them, bemoaning his reputation. "Just because I've got BIG POINTY TEETH and RAZOR-SHARP CLAWS and I occasionally like to dress up like an OLD LADY, that doesn't mean… / … I'm a BAD GUY." To prove this very fact, Mr. Wolf enlists three equally slandered friends into the Good Guys Club: Mr. Snake (aka the Chicken Swallower), Mr. Piranha (aka the Butt Biter), and Mr. Shark (aka Jaws). After some convincing from Mr. Wolf, the foursome sets off determined to un-smirch their names (and reluctantly curbing their appetites). Although these predators find that not everyone is ready to be at the receiving end of their helpful efforts, they use all their Bad Guy know-how to manage a few hilarious good deeds. Blabey has hit the proverbial nail on the head, kissed it full on the mouth, and handed it a stick of Acme dynamite. With illustrations that startle in their manic comedy and deadpan direct address and with a narrative that follows four endearingly sardonic characters trying to push past (sometimes successfully) their fear-causing natures, this book instantly joins the classic ranks of Captain Underpants and The Stinky Cheese Man.

We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face. (Fiction. 7-11)

Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2017

ISBN: 978-0-545-91240-2

Page Count: 144

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
CRANKY PUG
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

- BOOK REVIEW
CAT ON THE RUN IN CUCUMBER MADNESS!
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

- BOOK REVIEW
CAT ON THE RUN IN CAT OF DEATH!
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE AND THE WRATH OF THE PAPERCLIP

bookshelf

THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE AND THE WRATH OF THE PAPERCLIP

From the First Cat in Space series , Vol. 3

by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Shawn Harris ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 5, 2024

File under “laugh riot.”

bookshelf

A rogue spell-check program’s bid to transform all life-forms into that eminently useful office item, the paper clip, touches off a fresh round of lunar lunacy.

Predicated on the entirely reasonable premise that eliminating all spelling and grammar errors everywhere would logically lead to the necessity of exterminating carbon-based life in the universe, this third series entry combines high stakes with daffy banter and daring exploits. CheckMate—a chipper, jumped-up editing program—has invented the Transmogratron, a giant laser that will fulfill its ultimate goals in both the cyber world and “meatspace.” Facing challenges as random as prankster lunar unicorns and a disarmingly motherly Motherboard, scowling First Cat joins a motley crew of diversely carbon- and silicon-based allies, led by the pearlescent Queen of the Moon. They’re in a race to the finish—diverted occasionally by, for instance, a relentlessly punny comic-book interlude featuring a pair of literal and figurative Pool Sharks. They ultimately triumph thanks to teamwork and moxie. Following a celebratory party and toasts to “new friends…and steadfast comrades” (and, of course, “MEOW”), the story’s energetic, brightly colored panels close with a reveal of the next volume. (“I always hate it when comics end by announcing a sequel. SO CRINGE!” declares an authorial stand-in.) It can’t come too soon.

File under “laugh riot.” (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)