Unapologetically agenda driven, but the behavioral advice is valid enough.
Dinosaur preschoolers demonstrate compromise, anger management, and other socialization skills.
What should little Chomp do when classmate Camara takes the last purple building block? When Rio puts party invitations into every cubby except his? Or, at last, when he beats everyone back inside after recess and finds snacks laid out? For each scenario Ayala-Kronos poses rhetorical questions—“Should Chomp ROAR? Should Chomp STOMP? Should Chomp…CHOMP?”—then offers the titular strategy. It turns out to be savvy counsel, as Sordo demonstrates in his simply drawn cartoons by following scenes of the overalls-clad Chomp acting out with more-harmonious alternative views: of smiling dinos using the purple block to link their two constructions, of Rio personally delivering an extra-special invitation with a hug, and like cozy outcomes. It all culminates in a final observation that sometimes a CHOMP! is the right move (so long as there’s enough for everyone). In both concept and the styling of the title character, this book can’t help comparison with Bob Shea’s Dinosaur Vs. series, but it’s considerably tamer. And as prehistoric guides to better behavior go, the droll and venerable How Do Dinosaurs… series from Jane Yolen and Mark Teague offers a far broader set of prescriptions, but younger beastlings may be tempted to give this a nibble. A bouncy song based on the story (written and performed by Jonathan Dean) is available for free from the publisher’s website. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Unapologetically agenda driven, but the behavioral advice is valid enough. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 20, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-358-41098-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: May 4, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Sadly, the storytelling runs aground.
A little red sleigh has big Christmas dreams.
Although the detailed, full-color art doesn’t anthropomorphize the protagonist (which readers will likely identify as a sled and not a sleigh), a close third-person text affords the object thoughts and feelings while assigning feminine pronouns. “She longed to become Santa’s big red sleigh,” reads an early line establishing the sleigh’s motivation to leave her Christmas-shop home for the North Pole. Other toys discourage her, but she perseveres despite creeping self-doubt. A train and truck help the sleigh along, and when she wishes she were big, fast, and powerful like them, they offer encouragement and counsel patience. When a storm descends after the sleigh strikes out on her own, an unnamed girl playing in the snow brings her to a group of children who all take turns riding the sleigh down a hill. When the girl brings her home, the sleigh is crestfallen she didn’t reach the North Pole. A convoluted happily-ever-after ending shows a note from Santa that thanks the sleigh for giving children joy and invites her to the North Pole next year. “At last she understood what she was meant to do. She would build her life up spreading joy, one child at a time.” Will she leave the girl’s house to be gifted to other children? Will she stay and somehow also reach ever more children? Readers will be left wondering. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 31.8% of actual size.)
Sadly, the storytelling runs aground. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-72822-355-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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