A charming enemies-to-friends tale with big personalities.
A troll and a fish realize that they can help instead of harm each other in this Scandinavian-inspired legend.
Oscar the troll, star of Cetas and Kose’s Oscar and the Awful, Horrible Smell (2022), loves to fish. Otto is a fish who plays pranks on anglers, evading all attempts at capture. When Otto arrives at Oscar’s pond, a challenge of wills begins. Otto eats the worms from Oscar’s hook and net, so Oscar tricks Otto with a clear line and hook. “Oscar and Otto both pulled and pulled and pulled.” The line breaks, leaving Oscar frustrated and Otto hurting, with the hook still stuck in his mouth. When Oscar tries ice fishing, unable to wait until spring, the troll falls through the ice—rescued by none other than Otto! Determined to catch the fish to remove the hook, Oscar makes a new plan, this time ending in friendship. The two wily characters, well depicted in both Cetas’ prose and Kose’s gentle cartoon illustrations, will have readers delighted that neither loses in the end. Cetas uses some repeated story beats, building Oscar’s frustration and Otto’s arrogant behavior, and Kose compliments those moments, adding Otto’s peers into the illustrations to show that his lack of humility has not won him many friends. With plenty of repeated words to help young children decipher the vocabulary, this is a good choice for emergent readers.
A charming enemies-to-friends tale with big personalities.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 41
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
BOOK REVIEW
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle...
Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine’s experience as she struggles to realize her vision.
First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: “[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn’t turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she “tinkers,” “wrenches,” “fiddles,” “examines,” “stares” and “tweaks.” Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner’s through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant.
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-55453-704-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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