The characters are cute and colorful, but they’re not strong enough to carry this weak storyline and flawed interface to a...
An interactive exploration of what might have happened after the Tortoise bested the Hare.
The story begins with Sheldon the tortoise standing on the podium, waving his golden trophy. Just below him are the sulking Hare and a seemingly content mole. Animal spectators are celebrating Sheldon’s win—but when Sheldon goes to bed one night, a hare posse sneaks in and steals his beloved prize. Sheldon recovers the trophy (seemingly by telekinesis), but in a spectacular anticlimax, a mole subsequently steals it and scurries down a deep underground pathway, never to be seen again. Interactions are plenteous, if not exciting. With a simple tap, leaves fall, animals make sounds, a light switches off, and a scuffle commences—nothing groundbreaking. There’s a cute sequence in which readers help Sheldon escape from the hare mob and another in which they help assemble a makeshift replacement trophy. The main problem with this app is that it’s not particularly well-designed. In select places, the visuals and interactions don’t match the text description. For example, the narrator says, “Oh no! The hares have stolen the trophy!” while the golden prize is still sitting on Sheldon’s nightstand. Screen transitions are universally sluggish.
The characters are cute and colorful, but they’re not strong enough to carry this weak storyline and flawed interface to a first-place finish. (iPad storybook app. 2-5)Pub Date: April 24, 2014
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Bee Square
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
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BOOK REVIEW
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable.
You think you know shapes? Animals? Blend them together, and you might see them both a little differently!
What a mischievous twist on a concept book! With wordplay and a few groan-inducing puns, Neal creates connections among animals and shapes that are both unexpected and so seemingly obvious that readers might wonder why they didn’t see them all along. Of course, a “lazy turtle” meeting an oval would create the side-splitting combo of a “SLOW-VAL.” A dramatic page turn transforms a deeply saturated, clean-lined green oval by superimposing a head and turtle shell atop, with watery blue ripples completing the illusion. Minimal backgrounds and sketchy, impressionistic detailing keep the focus right on the zany animals. Beginning with simple shapes, the geometric forms become more complicated as the book advances, taking readers from a “soaring bird” that meets a triangle to become a “FLY-ANGLE” to a “sleepy lion” nonagon “YAWN-AGON.” Its companion text, Animal Colors, delves into color theory, this time creating entirely hybrid animals, such as the “GREEN WHION” with maned head and whale’s tail made from a “blue whale and a yellow lion.” It’s a compelling way to visualize color mixing, and like Animal Shapes, it’s got verve. Who doesn’t want to shout out that a yellow kangaroo/green moose blend is a “CHARTREUSE KANGAMOOSE”?
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0534-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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