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SAMANTHASAURUS REX

Name: SAMANTHASAURUS REX
Author: B.B. Mandell
ISBN: 978-0-06-234873-9

by B.B. Mandell ; illustrated by Suzanne Kaufman ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 3, 2016

Skip this one, and choose instead something featuring both a strong, resourceful girl and a story worthy of her.

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A plucky dinosaur uses her brains and creativity to save her family from a fiery volcano.

Samanthasaurus Rex is on the quirky side, for a dinosaur. Her family members want her to be strong, to lead, and to make lots of noise, but she prefers painting animals over chasing them, sorting bones over gnawing on them, and using her words over biting and fighting. When the family goes for a hike, instead of whacking branches, scouting trails, and stomping out geysers, Samanthasaurus weaves ferns to make a rope, collects rocks, and uses a diamond to harness energy. The little dinosaur soon discovers that the mountain they are climbing is actually a volcano, and, predictably, she uses her rope, her diamond, and her loudest roar to save her oblivious family and get them back to safety. The detailed illustrations flesh out the otherwise sparse and stilted narrative, depicting Samanthasaurus (pink, natch) carrying a stack of books and teaching a class, for example. All told, the message here is a positive one about valuing all types of interests and leadership styles. Unfortunately, though, it suffocates this effort, leaving the characters and plot with no spark of life or sense of authenticity.

Skip this one, and choose instead something featuring both a strong, resourceful girl and a story worthy of her. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: May 3, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234873-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S DINOSAURS & PREHISTORIC CREATURES | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Jim Valeri

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

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FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)