Delightful art and charming characters can’t compensate for a flawed narrative structure.
Clarissa invites her stuffed animals to a tea party, but they respond with gruff, grumpy refusals.
The animals (Elephant, Rabbit, Pig, Monkey, Bear, and Pup) all harbor different grudges, which they share with Clarissa (a paper-white, ebony-haired tot about their size) while she brightly tries to persuade them to party. “Clarissa: Let’s get started. Who’s going to bring the chairs? / Rabbit: Not me. Nuh-uh. You left me outside. I’m still damp. / Pig: I’m losing my stuffing. BECAUSE OF YOU!” All those colons and speaker designations appear throughout what could’ve been a charming story, compromising lively dialogue and disrupting narrative flow. Sadly stilted when read aloud, this book won’t find an audience with independent readers, who will find the stuffed animals and their grievances (lost stuffing, knotted shoelaces, and soap in the eyes) just a bit too infantile. Readers of any age can relate to occasionally acting like a crankypants, and they can also find much to love in such evocative, empathetic illustrations. Acrylics give color (lemony yellows, grass greens, and mellow reds) and shape (lovely, loose linework) to vivid feelings (shown effectively as weather changes). The group reaches reconciliation as Clarissa unravels a series of misunderstandings, demonstrating how heightened emotional moments can resolve and actually bring people closer together. Unfortunately, the narrative form will keep readers from appreciating all this.
Delightful art and charming characters can’t compensate for a flawed narrative structure. (Picture book. 2-6)Pub Date: June 23, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4814-5900-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Caitlyn Dlouhy/Atheneum
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2020
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes.
A lift-the-flap book gives the littlest trick-or-treaters some practice identifying partygoers under their costumes.
Little Blue Truck and his buddy Toad are off to a party, and they invite readers (and a black cat) along for the ride: “ ‘Beep! Beep! Beep!’ / says Little Blue. / ‘It’s Halloween!’ / You come, too.” As they drive, they are surprised (and joined) by many of their friends in costume. “Who’s that in a tutu / striking a pose / up on the tiniest / tips of her toes? / Under the mask / who do you see?” Lifting the flap unmasks a friend: “ ‘Quack!’ says the duck. / ‘It’s me! It’s me!’ ” The sheep is disguised as a clown, the cow’s a queen, the pig’s a witch, the hen and her chick are pirates, and the horse is a dragon. Not to be left out, Little Blue has a costume, too. The flaps are large and sturdy, and enough of the animals’ characteristic features are visible under and around the costumes that little ones will be able to make successful guesses even on the first reading. Lovely curvy shapes and autumn colors fade to dusky blues as night falls, and children are sure to notice the traditional elements of a Halloween party: apple bobbing, lit jack-o’-lanterns, and punch and treats.
Beloved Little Blue takes a bit of the mystery—and fear—out of Halloween costumes. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-77253-3
Page Count: 16
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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