A light look at childhood friendship and the complicated, primitive feelings that often accompany any relationship.
Dinosaurs and dragons don’t usually mix, but when little Gingersnap’s wings fail her up in the clouds, she crashes right into Freddie down on the ground. A face-off transpires.
Bobbleheads, overbites and almost identical bodies make the impending fisticuffs immediately comedic and cute. Gingersnap’s minuscule bow, holding a single lock of purple dragon hair, doesn’t hurt either. The scrawny tykes feud and fight across a spiky, barbed world of primordial plants, big-eyed bugs and fanged lizards. Readers will eagerly explore this densely populated environment while giggling at Freddie and Gingersnap’s silly skirmish. Finger and toe claws “click” and “clack”; teeth “snip” and “snap.” Lively onomatopoeic action words run throughout, appearing within the artwork in purple and green block letters that correspond nicely with Freddie’s moss-green and Gingersnap’s plum-purple bodies. A dramatic foldout depicts these little bodies clinging together at the edge of a precipice and then landing (“PLIP! PLOP!”) in a thorn patch. Freddie’s encouragement helps Gingersnap get her wings moving, and the two of them make their way out of the brambles. To children who scowl at the opposite gender (Are they a different species or what?), Freddie and Gingersnap’s rivalry makes perfect sense, as does the way it evolves quickly into a blurred angry/fun game of chase and eventually into a mutual adventure.
A light look at childhood friendship and the complicated, primitive feelings that often accompany any relationship. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 14, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-5958-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Oct. 19, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their...
Less ambitious than Chris Gall’s widely known Dinotrux (2009) and sequels, this British import systematically relegates each dinosaur/construction-equipment hybrid to its most logical job.
The title figures are introduced as bigger than both diggers and dinosaurs, and rhyming text and two construction-helmeted kids show just what these creatures are capable of. Each diggersaur has a specific job to do and a distinct sound effect. The dozersaurus moves rocks with a “SCRAAAAPE!!!” while the rollersaurus flattens lumps with a cheery “TOOT TOOT!!” Each diggersaur is numbered, with 12 in all, allowing this to be a counting book on the sly. As the diggersaurs (not all of which dig) perform jobs that regular construction equipment can do, albeit on a larger scale, there is no particular reason why any of them should have dinosaurlike looks other than just ’cause. Peppy computer art tries valiantly to attract attention away from the singularly unoriginal text. “Diggersaurs dig with bites so BIG, / each SCOOP creates a crater. // They’re TOUGH and STRONG / with necks so long— / they’re super EXCAVATORS!” Far more interesting are the two human characters, a white girl and a black boy, that flit about the pictures offering commentary and action. Much of the fun of the book can be found in trying to spot them on every two-page spread.
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their dino/construction kicks. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-4779-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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