A heartwarming tale of friendship and mutual support for young animal-lovers.
In Tatchell’s picture book, a storytelling mouse entertains her zoo-dwelling friends—until she loses her voice.
Under the floorboards in a zoo’s monkey enclosure lives a mouse who earns her meals by regaling other animals with her tales and accompanying drawings. Each friend receives a personalized story (“The zebras begged for barn yard time, / with pigs and horses too. / They liked it when the cows got loose / and all the chickens flew”), but her favorite companion is a baby monkey who, like the other animals, lives vicariously through the mouse’s stories of “the world beyond the zoo.” One day, Mouse catches a cold, which causes her to lose her voice and go on hiatus from storytelling. The zoo residents understand, but they soon struggle with boredom and must invent a new tradition to fill the gap. This sweet story about the power of friendship is Tatchell’s fifth picture book and recalls such classic zoo-themed works as Philip C. Stead’s A Sick Day for Amos McGee (2010). Perko’s soft-edged full-color illustrations give characters big expressions and a clear sense of community, showing them climbing over each other or sitting together whenever possible. Tatchell’s rhyming narration, continued in Mouse’s storytelling, likewise builds a strong sense of unity.
A heartwarming tale of friendship and mutual support for young animal-lovers.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 31
Publisher: MY ANIMAL BOOKS
Review Posted Online: Sept. 7, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree.
A Christmas edition of the beloved alphabet book.
The story starts off nearly identically to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989), written by John Archambault and the late Bill Martin Jr, with the letters A, B, and C deciding to meet in the branches of a tree. This time, they’re attempting to scale a Christmas tree, not a coconut tree, and the letters are strung together like garland. A, B, and C are joined by the other letters, and of course they all “slip, slop, topple, plop!” right down the tree. At the bottom, they discover an assortment of gifts, all in a variety of shapes. As a team, the letters and presents organize themselves to get back up on the Christmas tree and get a star to the top. Holiday iterations of favorite tales often fall flat, but this take succeeds. The gifts are an easy way to reinforce another preschool concept—shapes—and the text uses just enough of the original to be familiar. The rhyming works, sticking to the cadence of the source material. The illustrations pay homage to the late Lois Ehlert’s, featuring the same bold block letters, though they lack some of the whimsy and personality of the original. Otherwise, everything is similarly brightly colored and simply drawn. Those familiar with the classic will be drawn to this one, but newcomers can enjoy it on its own.
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665954761
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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