Merry, with a bit of zest.
A cheeky riff on “Snow White.”
A witch loathes a princess. There’s no backstory provided, but “this particular princess was getting a little too sweet for her own good”—whatever that means to this witch—and the witch sets out to create a poisoned apple. But she can only collect enough ingredients to poison a single apple, so her plan has only one shot. The scheme starts out fine—hilariously, the witch just hands the apple directly to the princess, who accepts it without question—but it turns into an innocent apple-relay. Princess, dwarfs, deer, and a squirrel pass the apple along, each to the next, in artless generosity to hungry fellow creatures. When the squirrel scampers up a tree with the apple, the witch, desperate to avoid having “put in all that work for nothing,” climbs up too—and suffers a fall that leads her, via crash-induced amnesia, into the very doom she’d planned for the princess. Above the narrative text, occasional speech bubbles contain pictures that function as the story’s only dialogue, including one swear word (don’t tell!). Everyone seems White; the witch is green-skinned with a stereotypical big nose and moles. The illustrations are clever and offbeat—a fawn rides atop its parent’s back—and highlight hatchings, sharp points (including the witch’s nose), and curves (including the princess’s bodice: Whether by dress design or posture, her back always appears arched).
Merry, with a bit of zest. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-64567-060-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
Cleverly reinforces the dangers of running on empty.
The titular robot learns a lesson in balancing work with rest.
Although Whirby loves school and excels at subjects like magnetics, circuitry, and tinkering, he especially adores gadgeteering, because of the opportunities for “bot battles.” Whirby is so excited about competing in the next day’s tournament that he stays up all night practicing instead of plugging himself in and recharging his battery. The next morning, “his gears [feel] gritty, his buttons [feel] busted, and his cranks [feel] extra cranky.” At school, he experiences a major malfunction, and by the time he reaches the sporting ring, his battery has gone dead. His instructor, Dr. Whizbang, sends him home. Though devastated at missing his chance to go up against Dottie the Destroyer, Whirby makes a few observations about his body that night and “[codes] a new sequence” for himself, which little ones will recognize as a robot’s equivalent of bedtime rituals. Will Whirby feel ready tomorrow? Though older readers may find the tale a bit didactic, with its clearly telegraphed lessons, younger ones will be charmed by Whirby. Harris employs well-flowing sentences that make effective use of alliteration while playfully incorporating technical jargon. Featuring bright, eye-catching backdrops, Souva’s whimsical, blocky depictions of automatons pair well with the text.
Cleverly reinforces the dangers of running on empty. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Feb. 17, 2026
ISBN: 9780063385474
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
Inspiring, adventurous fun for aspirational kids.
A little girl’s imaginative plan to become an astronaut and be the first to travel to Mars really takes off.
Together with a crew of stuffed animals (owl, rabbit, and teddy bear), Sadie Sprocket does her research, gathers materials to build her spaceship, and, with support from family and friends—and media coverage—embarks on her historic journey. Rhyming quatrains tell the story of how Sadie patiently reads, cooks, and records important data during the 100-day interplanetary journey. And then: “The Earth behind, so far away, / was now a tiny dot. / Then Sadie cried, ‘There’s planet Mars! / It’s smaller than I thought!’ ” After landing and gathering 20 bags of samples, Sadie and crew are stuck in a red sandstorm while trying to take off again. But with Sadie’s determination and can-do spirit, they blast off, safely returning to Earth with future heroic space-exploration ideas in mind. Spiky cartoons transform a child’s playroom into an outer-space venue, complete with twinkling stars and colorful planets. Sadie presents White while her encouraging fans feature more diversity. An addendum includes brief facts about Mars and a handful of women space scientists. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 50% of actual size.)
Inspiring, adventurous fun for aspirational kids. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5420-1803-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 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.
