Those training to take over the family business, like Toad, may find this amusing, but others should steer clear.
Mama and Toad and their bright red tow truck save several friends from roadside mishaps.
“Mama and Toad out on the road. / Go, Mama, go! Go, little toad! / Why, who’s that friend / around the bend? / Alas! Alas! / It’s a… // Goat out of gas!” Mama and Toad know just what to do to get the driver of the truck labeled “Bob’s Bounce Houses” back on the road. They also encounter a “Fox with a flat” and a “Moose in the muck” whose balloons and pizza (both also from Bob’s) need to be delivered. Shaskan’s digital illustrations have a Saturday-morning–cartoon look, with their bright, flat colors and simple backgrounds. In a nice touch, small Toad, who uses a car seat, is shown getting their hands dirty with each rescue, pouring the gas, jacking up the car, even removing the lug nuts. In the end, the toads and their friends wind up in the same place: a party thanking the two for all their help. That’s a puzzler since not only do the toads encounter their friends when they are going in opposite directions on the road, but their friends were getting ready for the party before the toads had helped any of them. Plus, the rhythm of the repeated refrain rests on those reading aloud forcing the enunciation of all four syllables of “delivery.”
Those training to take over the family business, like Toad, may find this amusing, but others should steer clear. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: March 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-239349-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2018
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes.
A lift-the-flap book gives the littlest trick-or-treaters some practice identifying partygoers under their costumes.
Little Blue Truck and his buddy Toad are off to a party, and they invite readers (and a black cat) along for the ride: “ ‘Beep! Beep! Beep!’ / says Little Blue. / ‘It’s Halloween!’ / You come, too.” As they drive, they are surprised (and joined) by many of their friends in costume. “Who’s that in a tutu / striking a pose / up on the tiniest / tips of her toes? / Under the mask / who do you see?” Lifting the flap unmasks a friend: “ ‘Quack!’ says the duck. / ‘It’s me! It’s me!’ ” The sheep is disguised as a clown, the cow’s a queen, the pig’s a witch, the hen and her chick are pirates, and the horse is a dragon. Not to be left out, Little Blue has a costume, too. The flaps are large and sturdy, and enough of the animals’ characteristic features are visible under and around the costumes that little ones will be able to make successful guesses even on the first reading. Lovely curvy shapes and autumn colors fade to dusky blues as night falls, and children are sure to notice the traditional elements of a Halloween party: apple bobbing, lit jack-o’-lanterns, and punch and treats.
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-77253-3
Page Count: 16
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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