A festive celebration of America’s more common parades.
Doesn’t everyone love a parade?
Beginning with Veteran’s Day, generally the first parade in the school year, and progressing chronologically, Denish and Franco capture the joyful chaos of long-standing parades like Thanksgiving, Chinese New Year, and Fourth of July as well as more recent or localized parades such as Pride Mardi Gras or the celebration of a sports championship. Most events are recognizable from illustrative or textual clues, but an informational paragraph about each parade in the backmatter clearly identifies each parade and its history. Vibrant, full-bleed illustrations show a diverse, multigenerational community participating in and enjoying each parade. Four lines of rhyming text describe each parade’s distinctive sights (“Friendly faces floating high. / Unicycles whizzing by. / Jazzy kickers, / Candy lickers”) and sounds (“Ladies clogging, clicks and claps”; “Firecrackers! Boom. Fizz. BAM”). The book’s title acts as a refrain for each spread. But wait! There’s an asterisk at the end of the title—why? There are two reasons. Readers will discover the first at the end of the main text and will want to carefully review the illustrations in Where’s Waldo? fashion now that they know the one sort of person who does not love a parade. A careful read of the author’s bio provides the second reason, in the description of her preferred way to enjoy a parade.
A festive celebration of America’s more common parades. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 18, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-63592-140-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
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
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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