Fanciful pretend play for the dragon-slaying preschooler.
A cave-dwelling monster named Theodore ponders potential foodstuffs.
Two enormous oval eyes peer out of a dark cave’s entrance, glowing pink in the sunrise, yellow in the morning light, and teal in the evening light. As various animals—a wolf, a bird, and a tiger—pass in front, Theodore considers eating each one but decides he’s not that hungry and utters the titular refrain: “I will not eat you.” A small white boy dressed in a blue hoodie and mud-splashed galoshes and wielding a metal trashcan-lid shield trots up to the cave on a hobbyhorse. He shines his flashlight into the cave and roars a great roar at Theodore. “Seriously?” thinks Theodore. “I should eat it.” Thus begins an epic battle between a pretend knight and what readers finally see to be a massive, horned, bearded red dragon. As Lehrhaupt spins this tale with deadpan humor, readers never fear for the boy. Magoon’s exuberant art recalls classic characters, most particularly Max in his wolf suit. The digital illustrations emulate mixed-media images: some leaves resemble block prints, and short, thin, penlike highlights enliven the animals’ fur. The text is hand-lettered. As the action escalates, Theodore becomes festooned with flowers that reflect the bright yellow glow of the flashlight’s beam. The palette, though dark, is never menacing.
Fanciful pretend play for the dragon-slaying preschooler. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-2933-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
