Rhythmic verses follow the trip of two toddlers and their mothers as they visit the zoo. After parallel illustrations trace the two early-morning scenes of waking, eating, and dressing, the children and mothers meet for a trip to visit a zoo full of mothers and their children. They visit the pigs, the cows, and birds, “Oink baby, moo baby, pretty in blue baby.” The children peek in at the leopards and the sloth. “Fast baby, slow baby,” and then the gently swimming seals, “go with the flow baby.” Softly tinted illustrations rendered in gouache bleed from the pages as if airbrushed. While the trip to the zoo, full of mothers and babies of all sizes and shapes, offers an interesting subject, the overly repetitious verse and somewhat saccharine paintings keep this from being a distinctive selection. (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: March 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-525-46952-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2004
A funny tale about stress and an ever upping ante, with a comforting end.
Something is preventing Owl from falling asleep.
Owl leans back against his white pillow and headboard. “Squeek!” says something underneath the bed. Owl’s never heard that sound before, so he fastens his pink bathrobe and answers the front door. Nobody. It must be the wind; back to bed. Bidding himself goodnight, he climbs into bed—and hears the noise again. Time after time, he pops out of bed seeking the squeaker. Is it in the cupboard? He empties the shelves. Under the floor? He pulls up his floorboards. As Owl’s actions ratchet up—he destroys the roof and smashes the walls, all in search of the squeak—so does his anxiety. Not until he hunkers down in bed under the night sky (his bed is now outdoors, because the house’s roof and walls are gone), frantically clutching his pillow, does he see what readers have seen all along: a small, gray mouse. In simple illustrations with black outlines, textured coloring, and foreshortened perspective, Pizzoli plays mischievously with mouse placement. Sometimes the mouse is behind Owl or just out of his sightline; other times, the mouse is on a solid, orange-colored page across the spread from Owl, which removes him from Owl’s scene in a rather postmodern manner. Is the mouse toying with Owl? Who knows?
A funny tale about stress and an ever upping ante, with a comforting end. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 19, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4847-1275-7
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016
Good, good book! (Picture book. 2-5)
Why is Bear so mad?
Readers first encounter Bear in his bedroom, scowling. A flashback (unusual in picture books) explains that he’s mad because he “was the first one to have to leave the park for a nap.” The accompanying art shows Bear being led off the recto and looking back longingly at other cubs on a playground. The text then explains that he tripped and “got an owie on the way home. And then he had to take off his boots and leave his favorite stick outside.” This understated, sympathetic text is extended and enhanced by Gee’s expressive, downright cuddly art, which evokes something of Kevin Henkes’ later style, with a dash of Marla Frazee’s emotive prowess. A zoomed-in portrait of Bear’s pouting face against a dark background brings readers back to the time of the opening spread and reads “Bear thinks it is all no fair.” This may bring to mind really, really angry Sophie and her blazing close-up in Molly Bang’s famous title. Bear’s ensuing tantrum alone in his room might make some wonder where his mother is (it was she who led him off the playground), but she soon reappears to give him lunch and tuck him in for a much-needed nap. When Bear awakens, he’s ready to play outside, refreshed and, like angry Sophie before him, no longer mad.
Good, good book! (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Oct. 23, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4814-4971-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
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