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BEARSUIT TURTLE MAKES A FRIEND

Name: BEARSUIT TURTLE MAKES A FRIEND
Author: Bob Shea
ISBN: 9781419771552

by Bob Shea ; illustrated by Bob Shea ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 2025

An amiable romp, funny to look at and fun to read.

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Two turtles form a unique bond over a shared special interest.

As the title humorously suggests, this picture book features a turtle in a bear costume. The suit is yellow and rotund, not unlike the form of a certain fabled bear with a particular taste for honey. The turtle cuts a comical figure—a little green ovoid face inhabiting the suit’s mouth, right about where a tongue should be. The suit’s hollow black interior frames a dramatic range of facial emotions. Bearsuit Turtle soon encounters a regular turtle who’s unconvinced that our hero is in fact a bear. So Bearsuit Turtle attempts to prove it as the other turtle lists skills that all bears have: climbing trees (the protagonist clambers up before quickly crashing to the ground), hibernating (a feat our hero manages for approximately two seconds), and foraging for food (in this case, ice cream—every bear’s favorite!). The turtles’ back-and-forth approaches increasingly absurd heights until our hero finally drops the charade—and the bear outfit. Shea employs his signature style, with characters rendered from simple shapes and a few rough-hewn lines communicating facial expressions perfectly. The pals amble through a brightly colored woodland speckled with pointy trees, blobby clouds, and the occasional tweety bird. The text is ideal for reading aloud and laughing along with, while the visual gag builds into a sweet relationship.

An amiable romp, funny to look at and fun to read. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 25, 2025

ISBN: 9781419771552

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Abrams

Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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PIZZA FOR BIRDS
by Bob Shea ; illustrated by Bob Shea

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PARROTFISH HAS A SUPERPOWER
by Jill Esbaum ; illustrated by Bob Shea

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OH, ARE YOU AWAKE?
by Bob Shea ; illustrated by Jarvis

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

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A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK AND RACER RED

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 2025

A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.

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In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.

Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”

A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)