An endearing tale that will especially resonate with dog lovers.
A pooch gets a new “leash” on life.
Lucy’s thrilled when Dad brings home Clyde, a sleek black greyhound who was once a racing dog. Lucy quickly spoils him: Clyde wears designer outfits, eats the finest meals, joins exclusive dog clubs, and even has a social media account. Lucy gives her pet a collar bearing a new name: “Cino.” But Clyde, who eked out a tough existence at the racetrack, can’t get used to this luxurious lifestyle. He leaves home and roams the streets for hours until he finds himself back at the track. Sad memories of his former life impel Clyde to flee. Soon it’s dark and he’s lost, so he takes shelter under a bridge. He realizes he misses home and his pampered life, especially Lucy’s cuddles. He awakens to…Lucy. She and some of his dog pals have been searching for him. Lucy takes him home, where she gives him something special—“the best gift he’d ever received”—a collar labeled “Clyde.” Children will be pleased with the satisfying ending to this sweet Australian import; they’ll be delighted to know this dog will continue to receive the devoted care he and all pets deserve while still maintaining his own identity. The story also offers a glimpse into the dreary life of some racing dogs. The lively, stylized, bold illustrations have an art deco look and will draw readers in. Lucy is brown-skinned; background characters are diverse.
An endearing tale that will especially resonate with dog lovers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 9, 2024
ISBN: 9781761210808
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Hare/Trafalgar
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Toad and Little Blue Truck get ready for a hayride.
After the titular vehicle is loaded with hay, Toad is nowhere to be found. “Beep! Beep! Beep! Where are you, Toad?” asks Little Blue Truck. All the barnyard animals look for him. Sheep searches the meadow. Goose and Duck check the pond. Others pitch in, too, but Toad seems to have disappeared…until Hen hears snoring coming from the pile of hay in the back of Little Blue Truck. Although the text’s scansion is imperfect in places (adults may want to pre-read to ensure a smooth read-aloud), the bouncy meter and rhyming text nevertheless capture the energy of the search and the farmyard community’s concern for Toad’s safety, making this a solid storytime choice. Eye-catching illustrations with rich, fully saturated colors balance the right level of detail while still highlighting the animal that is the focus of each verse. By introducing one farm animal at a time, Schertle also helps the youngest readers begin to identify barnyard animals by name and understand their unique farm homes. Traditional animal sounds are part of the text, and listeners will add them to their vocabulary. It all ends with the promised hayride, bringing the tale to a joyous ending.
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2026
ISBN: 9780063436121
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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