A well-fashioned, if thinly sliced, tale of the well-traveled princess.
Hart and Warburton serve forth another princess with far too many peas in her life.
Just by the look of her, readers know Lily-Rose May is “a sweet little girlie; / her eyes were bright blue and her hair was so curly.” She and her dad live in the woods: “She was kind and polite and was usually good.” Then comes the day her dad tries to foist peas on her, and Lily-Rose May will have none of it. “Her hands were all sweaty. Her skin felt so crawly.” She isn’t faking; the peas really do make her sick, and then comes the doctor’s diagnosis: Lily-Rose May is a princess. His prescription is for her to move to the castle. No peas there, thank goodness, but there is cold cabbage stew and all the demands of royalty that diminish the allure of the big house and nice clothes. Papa and his peas suddenly look very good. The story here is meager and mild to the point of vanishing: nothing syrupy, no hard yuks at anyone’s expense. What keeps the book aloft, and it does hover nicely, especially for the front end of its age range, is the sheer musicality of the verse, which slips off the tongue as if it had been greased, and the merry artwork, which is buoyant and full of colors that rove between springlike and ribbon candy.
A well-fashioned, if thinly sliced, tale of the well-traveled princess. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6532-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A nice but not requisite purchase.
A retelling of the classic fairy tale in board-book format and with a Mexican setting.
Though simplified for a younger audience, the text still relates the well-known tale: mean-spirited stepmother, spoiled stepsisters, overworked Cinderella, fairy godmother, glass slipper, charming prince, and, of course, happily-ever-after. What gives this book its flavor is the artwork. Within its Mexican setting, the characters are olive-skinned and dark-haired. Cultural references abound, as when a messenger comes carrying a banner announcing a “FIESTA” in beautiful papel picado. Cinderella is the picture of beauty, with her hair up in ribbons and flowers and her typically Mexican many-layered white dress. The companion volume, Snow White, set in Japan and illustrated by Misa Saburi, follows the same format. The simplified text tells the story of the beautiful princess sent to the forest by her wicked stepmother to be “done away with,” the dwarves that take her in, and, eventually, the happily-ever-after ending. Here too, what gives the book its flavor is the artwork. The characters wear traditional clothing, and the dwarves’ house has the requisite shoji screens, tatami mats and cherry blossoms in the garden. The puzzling question is, why the board-book presentation? Though the text is simplified, it’s still beyond the board-book audience, and the illustrations deserve full-size books.
A nice but not requisite purchase. (Board book/fairy tale. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7915-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The action of this rhymed and humorous tale centers upon a mouse who "took a stroll/through the deep dark wood./A fox saw the mouse/and the mouse looked good." The mouse escapes being eaten by telling the fox that he is on his way to meet his friend the gruffalo (a monster of his imagination), whose favorite food is roasted fox. The fox beats a hasty retreat. Similar escapes are in store for an owl and a snake; both hightail it when they learn the particulars: tusks, claws, terrible jaws, eyes orange, tongue black, purple prickles on its back. When the gruffalo suddenly materializes out of the mouse's head and into the forest, the mouse has to think quick, declaring himself inedible as the "scariest creature in the deep dark wood," and inviting the gruffalo to follow him to witness the effect he has on the other creatures. When the gruffalo hears that the mouse's favorite food is gruffalo crumble, he runs away. It's a fairly innocuous tale, with twists that aren't sharp enough and treachery that has no punch. Scheffler's funny scenes prevent the suspense from culminating; all his creatures, predator and prey, are downright lovable. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: June 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-8037-2386-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1999
SEEN & HEARD
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