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BOX

Name: BOX
Author: Min Flyte
ISBN: 978-0-7636-8939-1

by Min Flyte ; illustrated by Rosalind Beardshaw ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 23, 2016

A bright and cozy excursion down a well-toddled path.

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Further evidence that, for young children at least, boxes are gifts that keep on giving.

Thomas, Alice, Sam, and Nancy each have a carton that, with the lift of a flap—or in Nancy’s case, several nested flaps—reveals a toy or other surprise. Following a brief round of play, the children then turn to the empties: “Whatever do you think they’ll do with all those boxes? Well….” More-elaborate play ensues, as the cartons are combined, altered, and decorated to serve as a castle, a ship, a stage, a tall foldout rocket, an even larger gatefold train, and finally a cozy nest just right for a collective snooze. The theme isn’t exactly new, but the narrative’s leading questions and the large, cleanly drawn figures of bigheaded children and their creative efforts make this a particularly simple and direct explication. Thomas, Alice, and Sam are all fair; Nancy has brown skin and kinky hair. Following up with the likes of Ethan Long’s Out of the Box (2014) or Suzanne Bloom’s A Mighty Fine Time Machine (2009) may prompt deeper digs into the imaginative possibilities.

A bright and cozy excursion down a well-toddled path. (Novelty picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-7636-8939-1

Page Count: 20

Publisher: Nosy Crow

Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
WOULD YOU DARE. . . ?
by Min Flyte ; illustrated by Matt Hunt

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CINDERELLA

From the Once Upon a World series

by Chloe Perkins ; illustrated by Sandra Equihua ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 13, 2016

A nice but not requisite purchase.

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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

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
THE LITTLE MERMAID
adapted by Hannah Eliot ; illustrated by Nivea Ortiz

- BOOK REVIEW
THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA
by Chloe Perkins ; illustrated by Dinara Mirtalipova

- BOOK REVIEW
RAPUNZEL
by Chloe Perkins ; illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan

- BOOK REVIEW
THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA
by Chloe Perkins ; illustrated by Dinara Mirtalipova

- BOOK REVIEW
RAPUNZEL
by Chloe Perkins ; illustrated by Archana Sreenivasan

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THE GRUFFALO

by Julia Donaldson illustrated by Axel Scheffler ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1999

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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)