A mouse leads a series of pursuers in a merry chase that lasts exactly one hour. At precisely 6:00 a.m., an orange cat spies “the mouse that started it all” enjoying cookie crumbs while its master sleeps. It leaps out the window after the mouse, only to be itself followed by a dog, then the dogcatcher, a bank robber, and a police officer—to be finally thwarted when the whole parade runs afoul of a grocer’s bananas. Crummel (And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon, 2001, etc.) employs the tried-and-true rhythms of “The House that Jack Built”; while the rhythm occasionally falters, it does move the story along. The double-paged spreads are framed in a deep blue; the text (preceded by a digital read-out of the time) snakes its way around this border, occasionally moving aside when a picture element breaks the frame. Donohue (Sweet Hearts, 2002, etc.) provides the concept for this offering, according to the title page, and her cut-paper collages offer a bright and cheery setting for the mayhem. While the layering of the papers creates an immediate three-dimensional effect, the figures are arranged against the background with a flat and childlike sense of perspective, making the illustrations as a whole pleasingly in tune with their audience. This flatness of perspective, however, is out of tune with the readouts of the time: the characters simply don’t seem to go very far, despite the generous one-hour allowance. Young children are unlikely to notice this disjuncture, however, and this offering does serve to help them develop a sense of elapsed time; that the story ends at 7:00 with everyone back in place except for a new mouse nibbling the crumbs will give those readers a happy frisson that the romp will begin all over again. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-7614-5129-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A visually engaging but otherwise underwhelming take on a classic.
A retelling of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, set in the Alaskan tundra.
Prolific picture-book author and illustrator Brett depicts Alice with short black hair, tan skin, and a fur-lined parka, while Lewis Carroll’s well-known characters are recast in new guises: The Cheshire Cat and Queen of Hearts appear as a Smilodon (saber-toothed cat) and snowy owl, respectively. Progressing at a rapid-fire pace, the narrative follows key moments of the original plot, including Alice’s fall down the rabbit hole (located within a glacier here), her tea party with the Hatter and the March Hare (this time, with the Old Prospector and the Varying Hare), and a scene where several playing cards paint the roses red (instead, the cotton grass) at the Queen’s behest. Characteristic of Brett’s illustrative style, each spread is packed with detail. Observant readers will find much to explore, from the well-worn playing cards that line each page to the intricate Alaskan birds and mammals featured at every turn. Still, the hectic rhythm of the story might lose youngsters, and its ho-hum text flattens some of Carroll’s whimsy. Adults may be disappointed that Brett has chosen to highlight only the area’s animals and colonial history (the Prospector hearkens back to Alaska’s history of colonial encroachment), with no explicit mention of the land’s rich Indigenous nations and cultures.
A visually engaging but otherwise underwhelming take on a classic. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Nov. 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780593533888
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2024
Powered by whimsy and nostalgia, a doggone adorable tale of superheroes transforming the world for the better.
Can flying puppies, fueled by people’s hugs, save the world from gloom?
Light-skinned Snarly McBummerpants is busy sending out Mopey Smokes (evil-looking dark brown clouds) from his volcano on the Island of Woe to create a sad state of affairs. But the caped puppies, each equipped with a rocket and hailing from “the outer reaches of NOT-FROM-HERE,” use their abilities to conquer the morose McBummerpants and bring happiness back to everyone’s lives. The meticulously detailed illustrations carry the story, dark colors turning to rainbow hues and frowns turning to smiles. From Big Brad to Tiny Brad, the smallest, most powerful puppy, who “[licks] a kiss right on the tip of Snarly McBummerpants’s nose,” these absolutely endearing pooches elicit a universal “AWWWWWWWWWW!” from all who encounter them. Joyce’s witty illustrations depict diverse children and adults who appear to hail from different decades. Two teenagers wear the bobby socks and saddle shoes of the 1940s and ’50s and sit atop a retro soda cooler. Other kids ride the skateboards of a later era. Laurel and Hardy, classic movie performers who may need introduction, are amusingly pictured as bullies turned florists (a little odd, since only Hardy bullied Laurel). Even McBummerpants seems reminiscent of an old-time movie villain. The text is less inventive than the pictures, but the message of good over evil is always timely.
Powered by whimsy and nostalgia, a doggone adorable tale of superheroes transforming the world for the better. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781665961332
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Caitlyn Dlouhy/Atheneum
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2024
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