A sweet, comical Halloween venture for all.
A pair of mischievous siblings discover a new world.
At 601 years old, Doki and Kebi are considered goofy and immature by the other dokkaebi (Korean goblins). Yet that doesn’t hold them back from pursuing their own interests. Doki, who is bright orange with purple hair and one yellow horn, doesn’t like to scare people and instead gives them gold or silver, which he magically conjures up with his club. He also loves spending time in the abandoned house where he lives, reading books. Kebi, his blue-skinned, green-haired, two-horned twin, is his opposite. He loves “scaring people a bit too much” as well as exploring. After hearing that their house in Seoul is going to be demolished, Kebi suggests that the two go to New York, where “there are haunted houses, and people go visit them because they WANT to be scared!” After much reflection Doki agrees, and the two are comically portrayed riding in the engine of a plane on its way to America. Cha’s narrative is straightforward yet humorous; an author’s note offering more information on dokkaebi rounds out the tale. Kim artfully employs dark hues and shadows with spots of bright color to invoke a spooky yet friendly tone, especially when a group of trick-or-treaters ends up giving the endearing dokkaebi a scare of their own. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sweet, comical Halloween venture for all. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593480212
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound.
The titular cookie runs off the page at a bookstore storytime, pursued by young listeners and literary characters.
Following on 13 previous How To Catch… escapades, Wallace supplies sometimes-tortured doggerel and Elkerton, a set of helter-skelter cartoon scenes. Here the insouciant narrator scampers through aisles, avoiding a series of elaborate snares set by the racially diverse young storytime audience with help from some classic figures: “Alice and her mad-hat friends, / as a gift for my unbirthday, / helped guide me through the walls of shelves— / now I’m bound to find my way.” The literary helpers don’t look like their conventional or Disney counterparts in the illustrations, but all are clearly identified by at least a broad hint or visual cue, like the unnamed “wizard” who swoops in on a broom to knock over a tower labeled “Frogwarts.” Along with playing a bit fast and loose with details (“Perhaps the boy with the magic beans / saved me with his cow…”) the author discards his original’s lip-smacking climax to have the errant snack circling back at last to his book for a comfier sort of happily-ever-after.
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-0935-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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