A sweet tale about friendship that gives a glimpse of life in another part of the world, this loving tribute to Beijing is a...
A Chinese girl in search of her lost kitty inadvertently takes readers on a tour of famous landmarks in Beijing.
An unnamed girl and a stray white kitty quickly form a friendship. “Kitty loves to come with me when I bicycle around Beijing.” The two even come up with a unique call and answer using the girl’s “new bell” she attaches to the handlebars: “Trrring-trring. Niaow-niaow, answers Kitty.” Unfortunately, while enjoying the kites at the Dragon Boat Festival, Kitty ambitiously captures a dragon kite only to be whisked away from her friend. The perfectly balanced and evenly paced narrative highlights the many historic sites in Beijing while showcasing the small scenes of everyday life during her search. “I visit Liulichang Street. Kitty has good taste in antiques. She likes to watch artists painting, too.” Yang brings another layer of emotion to the story when the girl finally finds her furry friend in the care of “a granny” and must decide where Kitty is needed the most. Yang’s simple sketches are painted over with bright, bold colors that are sure to keep young eyes exploring every scene, which bustle with cars, bicyclists, and other people enjoying activities both familiar and less typical for Western readers.
A sweet tale about friendship that gives a glimpse of life in another part of the world, this loving tribute to Beijing is a perfect read-aloud for young travelers. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: July 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9270-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A first-rate sharkfest, unusually nutritious for all its brevity.
Buzz and his buzzy buddy open a spinoff series of nonfiction early readers with an aquarium visit.
Buzz: “Like other fish, sharks breathe through gills.” Fly Guy: “GILLZZ.” Thus do the two pop-eyed cartoon tour guides squire readers past a plethora of cramped but carefully labeled color photos depicting dozens of kinds of sharks in watery settings, along with close-ups of skin, teeth and other anatomical features. In the bite-sized blocks of narrative text, challenging vocabulary words like “carnivores” and “luminescence” come with pronunciation guides and lucid in-context definitions. Despite all the flashes of dentifrice and references to prey and smelling blood in the water, there is no actual gore or chowing down on display. Sharks are “so cool!” proclaims Buzz at last, striding out of the gift shop. “I can’t wait for our next field trip!” (That will be Fly Guy Presents: Space, scheduled for September 2013.)
A first-rate sharkfest, unusually nutritious for all its brevity. (Informational easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-50771-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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