Fun—but less imaginative than some other bibliophilic picks.
The cast of characters from Hooray for Hat! and Hooray for Today! (2014, 2016) returns, this time cheerfully helping Turtle reunite with his favorite book.
The opening artwork sets up ongoing humor: pale-green Turtle stands, holding his brown turtle shell and tossing out various objects. The text reads: “He searched his entire house—but no book.” After ransacking an enormous pile of toys, sports equipment, and musical instruments, Turtle realizes that he may have lent his book to Zebra. Zebra has already passed the book along to Owl, and Owl to Giraffe. (Both Turtle and Zebra have male pronouns; no other animals are assigned genders in this text.) In between each friendly encounter, “HOORAY FOR BOOKS!” is repeated in large, colorful letters. Each animal offers a different book to Turtle, but he is intent on rereading his favorite. When Turtle finally retrieves his book from the bottom of Lion’s enormous pile, older readers may be disappointed that the laws of physics do not lead to total chaos but to a rather controlled toppling of tomes. In fact, despite some droll humor and the reading-positive message, the text and illustrations probably will have the greatest appeal for children who are not yet reading independently; the simple sentences and repetitions lend themselves well to reading aloud. To a struggling emergent reader, however, this excited celebration of books may feel more like coercion than encouragement.
Fun—but less imaginative than some other bibliophilic picks. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-544-74802-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 4, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2017
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
