A worthy stab at untangling a perennial grammatical knot, but the audience needs to be willing to go with it.
An oddball family visits some interesting places on their vacation, teaching readers about “their,” “there,” and “they’re” along the way.
Almost all of the hit-or-miss rhyming verses in an abcb pattern contain all three homophones, printed in boldface to make them stand out from the rest of the text: “The kids? They’re in the car. / They ask their parents, ‘Are we there?’ / while on their way to see / the World’s Largest Underwear.” Other stops on the tour include the Narwhal Petting Zoo (across from a wildly popular water park that tempts the two children not at all), Indoor Acres Camping Ground—complete with air conditioning, microwaves, and televisions and minus the bugs and sunburn—and the Cheezie Popz factory. The bold colors in Paillot’s digital illustrations make the artwork pop, and over-the-top facial expressions match its exuberance. Readers may wonder about all the luggage for what seems to be only a two-day vacation. Dad is dark-skinned, Mom is a pink-skinned redhead, and the kids are a mix of the two; the few people that round out some scenes are likewise diversely toned. A color-coded final note gives further guidance about when to use each homophone. Kids really need to read this book independently in order to see the words used in context, but it may feel too young for those that need this skill most.
A worthy stab at untangling a perennial grammatical knot, but the audience needs to be willing to go with it. (Picture book. 7-10)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7613-9033-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not the Best Riff on a Children’s Classic Ever, but good for the occasional chuckle. (Picture book. 7-9)
A twisted Richard Scarry–esque outing finds the creators’ “Uglydoll” figures serving in place of all the cute kitties and puppies and piggies.
Aimed at hip graduates of Scarry’s Best Word Book Ever (1963) and modeled after same, this visit to the Uglyverse invites readers to pore over big, busy, labeled assemblages of cartoon images while helping blobby Babo do a variety of things. They will search a city streetscape for his one-eyed unicorn, make stops at Ugly Port Harbor and elsewhere, tour a farmer’s market and a factory, then finally explore Babo’s home and neighborhood for such items as an “ebook reader,” a pitcher of “tea with interesting taste” and “pricey 1/6 scale action figures from Hong Kong.” Along with wisecracks in each relatively thematic spread’s introductory paragraph (“What’s a pleasure boat? Anything small that doesn’t sink”), the authors mix conventional descriptive words for common objects and people with a sardonic lexicon of terms both useful (“ATM number pad,” “retro game machine,” “parking enforcement officer”) and less so (“magnetic blender,” “canned moonlight”). Each is placed near a small, simply drawn item or garishly colored monster.
Not the Best Riff on a Children’s Classic Ever, but good for the occasional chuckle. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-375-86434-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Definitely not a beginner’s ABC book, but the visual and print punnery will have elementary kids (and adults) guessing and...
Help! The letter E has fallen (down the stairs) and can’t get up!
Get ready to chortle over this zany alphabet book, which poses as a mystery with the letters as the cast of characters, aided by some exclamation points. When E takes a tumble in the alphabet’s crowded communal quarters, all the others are concerned. A takes action, as always, calling the ambulance and assembling the alphabet to determine who will take E’s place. “O, you're the obvious option because you’re so well-rounded.” An announcement is made on television not to “uso! E! until! sho! rocovors!” D and C go to Washington to alert the "govornmont," while the other letters talk it up on talk shows. Then A decides to take a road trip to spread the word: “Pack your bags, lottors. It’s timo for a journoy!” When E just doesn’t get better, the search is on for the culprit who’s broken the letter law. The comic illustrations and the comments from the letters totally exaggerate the cleverness and fun while amusingly emphasizing the importance of the letter E in our language. Lichtenheld’s co-author developed the basic concept in a video, Alphabet House, and it is a rich one.
Definitely not a beginner’s ABC book, but the visual and print punnery will have elementary kids (and adults) guessing and laughing. (Alphabet picture book. 7-10)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8118-7898-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 6, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2011
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