This stimulating mix of hard information and prehistoric hijinks bodes well for subsequent volumes.
Kicking off a new comics series, over a dozen smart-mouthed dinosaurs strut their stuff amid added disquisitions on reptilian relatives, fossil bones, continental drift, coprolites and other topics of dino-interest.
For the most part, each page is an individual miniepisode framed in small, squared-off cartoon panels. Along with occasional appearances by paleontologist “Indino Jones,” the cast includes a range of toothy carnivores, from T. Rex to Velociraptor, and vegetarians, like Diplodocus and Triceratops. The dinos exchange wisecracks (“HEY, TYRANT! YOU’RE SO UGLY YOU LOOK LIKE MY BUTT!”) while demonstrating offensive and defensive features, distinctive crests or other decorations and (usually) messy eating habits. Along with the snarky dialogue, some amusing byplay is provided by a diminutive Compsognathus who recurrently pops up to get stomped or come to some other bad end. Despite the seemingly casual plotlines and comical cartoon art, distinctions between reptiles and dinosaurs, dinos that actually lived in different eras and other fine points of dinosaurology are carefully laid out. Moreover, boxes in the lower corners contain specific summary facts about each creature that are repeated in the closing glossary.
This stimulating mix of hard information and prehistoric hijinks bodes well for subsequent volumes. (Graphic fiction/nonfiction. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-59707-490-2
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Papercutz
Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2013
A hamster with an irritating lack of social skills fails to alienate a cast of small woodland creatures in this strange import. Looking more like an undersized koala in Martin’s simply drawn scenes, Hamster opens with a wish that “in the heavens and on earth [a]ll will praise an extraordinary hamster,” then goes on to explain in his diary how much everyone adores him, to disinvite Rabbit to his birthday party, to blow off a shy confession from Mole and so on—until at the culminating party he takes a bow after belittling everyone’s gifts. Meanwhile, the animals gather to mull such Big Questions as whether worms can shed tears of joy. Within each of her large sequential panels, the illustrator surrounds small figures with generous quantities of flat, uniformly colored green ground and blue sky, punctuated by the occasional tree or shrub. All that wide-open space focuses attention on the dialogue, which sometimes offers insights into the character of each member of the cast but too often falls flat: “Squirrel…a nut. Just one? Hmmm, not so great, so let’s just forget about it.” Yes, let’s. (Graphic picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: July 20, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59270-093-6
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The dream phantasms of a high-spirited narrator intersect, even crowd, reality, but the stream-of-consciousness text makes for a rambling, radically personal tale. Playful images of a stuffed lion, trampoline, purple shoes, and a cat named Pine-Cone take hold in a young girl’s imagination, despite her “old” mother who makes her go to bed when she’d rather “stay up early” and a big sister with a cranky disposition. At home, she likes counting flea bites and pretending to be a worm, but is afraid of the dark and going to Grade One. The second half of the book takes off in a separate first-day-of school direction. Wild dreams precede the big day, which includes bullies on the playground and instant friend Chelsea. The childlike articulations of the text are endearing, but not quite of universal interest, and don’t add up to a compelling story; children may more readily warm to Gay’s illustrations, which include a dreamlike flying cat, a menacing hot dog, and an uproarious stuffed toy looming over everyday domestic scenes. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 15, 1999
ISBN: 1-55143-107-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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