Visceral illustrations give an incongruously disturbing feel to an otherwise charming tale.
An enthusiastic pig gets more than he can swallow in this folksy cautionary tale.
In a small Newfoundland town, a trio of hardworking fishermen are treated to a hearty meal of stew and dumplings. A chaotic chain of events ensues when a fisherman tosses a dumpling away. It’s caught in midair by Ignatius, an opportunistic pig, but the dumpling becomes lodged in his throat. Terrified and in pain, Ignatius escapes his pen, then makes a break for the ocean in the hopes of cooling his burning throat. The path to relief is not an easy one, and along the way Ignatius encounters many obtrusive townspeople. Pies go flying, laundry is entangled, and a cow and an old lady are nearly toppled, but Ignatius is determined to find relief. Finally, he’s knocked flat after slipping on some kelp, which dislodges the dumpling and saves poor Ignatius. Though this story is reminiscent of beloved folktale-esque stories such as Tomie dePaola’s Strega Nona (1975), with its emphasis on scenery and townspeople, the illustrations are unsettling. Evocative word choices (“scalding hot lump of gluey dough” and Ignatius’ “soundless terror”), combined with Tomova’s decision to highlight Ignatius’ irritated throat with pops of red, make many pictures appear gruesome and frightening; at times he appears to be bleeding from the mouth. All human characters in the book present white.
Visceral illustrations give an incongruously disturbing feel to an otherwise charming tale. (Picture book. 5-10)Pub Date: March 19, 2024
ISBN: 9781998802081
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Running the Goat
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books.
Curious about the Big Wide World outside his Sasquatch community, Hugo makes a friend who is of it.
Sasquatch Hugo’s bedroom is inside a cave and possesses the charming feature of a small stream running through it that he can sail his little toy boat on. It’s cool, but he yearns to see the Big Wide World. When he asks his smart friend Gigi if a Sasquatch might become a sailor, she says it’s possible but would be difficult—the primary rule of their people is to not be seen by Humans. Then, in everyone’s favorite Hide and Go Sneak class, which is held outside, a Human appears; Hugo laughs at the sight, drawing Human attention in a taboo-breaking mistake. Shortly after, Hugo’s toy boat floats into the cave with a Human toy—soon, it’s facilitating a pen-pal–type relationship that’s derailed when Hugo confesses to being a Sasquatch and Human Boone, a budding cryptozoologist, doesn’t believe him. How Hugo and Boone resolve this misapprehension and become friends in a joint search for the Ogopogo concludes this series opener. Potter keeps the third-person narrative tightly focused on Hugo’s perspective, and the details she uses to flesh out the Sasquatch world are delightfully playful. Sala’s drawings depict a homey Sasquatch cavern community, Boone as a freckled, white boy, and Hugo as a hairily benevolent behemoth.
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books. (final art unseen) (Fantasy. 5-9)Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2859-4
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
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