A welcome addition to shelves of graphic novels for new readers
A blended family of badgers and foxes make the best of close quarters in this wintertime story.
Mr. Badger and his three kits, Bristle, Berry and Grub, along with Mrs. Fox and her pup, Ginger, are hunkering down for a long winter together in this early-reader book that makes great use of comic conventions. Panel illustrations show the family gathering materials to make their shared den nice and cozy, while also discussing their differing wintertime behaviors: The badgers don’t hibernate, but they do sleep an awful lot to preserve their energy, and they rely on fat reserves to stay warm throughout the season, while the foxes grow thick winter coats and plan to hunt in the snowy forest. At first, the little ones have a hard time understanding these differences, and a dose of cabin fever makes the living situation rather fraught. Happily, the parents step in to ease tensions and to help their children make the most of the season and of their relationships with one another. Speech balloons, endearing illustrations of the characters, well-paced panels and lots of action from scene to scene will keep young readers invested in this story, particularly if they are already familiar with the previous titles in the series.
A welcome addition to shelves of graphic novels for new readers . (Graphic animal fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8225-9163-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Graphic Universe
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
A hamster with an irritating lack of social skills fails to alienate a cast of small woodland creatures in this strange import. Looking more like an undersized koala in Martin’s simply drawn scenes, Hamster opens with a wish that “in the heavens and on earth [a]ll will praise an extraordinary hamster,” then goes on to explain in his diary how much everyone adores him, to disinvite Rabbit to his birthday party, to blow off a shy confession from Mole and so on—until at the culminating party he takes a bow after belittling everyone’s gifts. Meanwhile, the animals gather to mull such Big Questions as whether worms can shed tears of joy. Within each of her large sequential panels, the illustrator surrounds small figures with generous quantities of flat, uniformly colored green ground and blue sky, punctuated by the occasional tree or shrub. All that wide-open space focuses attention on the dialogue, which sometimes offers insights into the character of each member of the cast but too often falls flat: “Squirrel…a nut. Just one? Hmmm, not so great, so let’s just forget about it.” Yes, let’s. (Graphic picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: July 20, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59270-093-6
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The dream phantasms of a high-spirited narrator intersect, even crowd, reality, but the stream-of-consciousness text makes for a rambling, radically personal tale. Playful images of a stuffed lion, trampoline, purple shoes, and a cat named Pine-Cone take hold in a young girl’s imagination, despite her “old” mother who makes her go to bed when she’d rather “stay up early” and a big sister with a cranky disposition. At home, she likes counting flea bites and pretending to be a worm, but is afraid of the dark and going to Grade One. The second half of the book takes off in a separate first-day-of school direction. Wild dreams precede the big day, which includes bullies on the playground and instant friend Chelsea. The childlike articulations of the text are endearing, but not quite of universal interest, and don’t add up to a compelling story; children may more readily warm to Gay’s illustrations, which include a dreamlike flying cat, a menacing hot dog, and an uproarious stuffed toy looming over everyday domestic scenes. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 15, 1999
ISBN: 1-55143-107-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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