SECRET TREE FORT

Name: SECRET TREE FORT
Author: Brianne Farley
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6297-4

by Brianne Farley ; illustrated by Brianne Farley ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 12, 2016

Like a beloved box rattling with tiny, precious, ferreted things, this delightful picture book holds small, wonderfully...

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A little sister’s entreaties to come play go unheard by her bookworm big sister, so she conjures a tree fort sure to get her attention.

Neon yellow and orange, the fort glows with awesomeness. Amenities include a retractable rope ladder, a water-balloon launcher, a skylight, signal flags, a handy pulley system, a crow's nest for stakeouts, and storage for marshmallows and chocolate. These killer trappings appear atop the girls’ muted woodsy reality, along with vibrant monsters and pirates and mermaids and whales (in brilliant pinks, oranges, yellows, and purples). Lingering on their fur, spots, faces, motives, and movements, readers follow the little sister’s imaginary wanderings. Her everyday voice (an offhanded use of the word "cool" and her bluster reverberate as real) makes her sibling exasperation simmer with authenticity. “FINE! I can play by myself. It will be great. It will be even better than if we played together. I know just where to go. I HAVE A SECRET TREE FORT, AND YOU’RE NOT INVITED!” Little sister’s squinted eyes, her hands on haughty hips, and smug, serene smile seethe. Big sister just raises an eyebrow. (Both girls are white.)

Like a beloved box rattling with tiny, precious, ferreted things, this delightful picture book holds small, wonderfully specific insights into childhood imaginings, feelings, and frustrations. (Picture book. 3-8)

Pub Date: April 12, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-7636-6297-4

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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WORM MAKES A SANDWICH
by Brianne Farley ; illustrated by Brianne Farley

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by Allan Wolf ; illustrated by Brianne Farley

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by Camille Andros ; illustrated by Brianne Farley

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YOUR BABY'S FIRST WORD WILL BE DADA

by Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2015

Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.

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A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.

A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.

Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: June 9, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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PAPA DOESN'T DO ANYTHING!
by Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez

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5 MORE SLEEPS 'TIL HALLOWEEN
by Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Rich Deas

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CON POLLO
by Jimmy Fallon & Jennifer Lopez ; illustrated by Andrea Campos

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Jimmy Fallon Christmas Book Coming This Fall

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ONE FAMILY

by George Shannon ; illustrated by Blanca Gómez ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 26, 2015

A visually striking, engaging picture book that sends the message that everyone counts.

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A playful counting book also acts as a celebration of family and human diversity.

Shannon’s text is delivered in spare, rhythmic, lilting verse that begins with one and counts up to 10 as it presents different groupings of things and people in individual families, always emphasizing the unitary nature of each combination. “One is six. One line of laundry. One butterfly’s legs. One family.” Gomez’s richly colored pictures clarify and expand on all that the text lists: For “six,” a picture showing six members of a multigenerational family of color includes a line of laundry with six items hanging from it outside of their windows, as well as the painting of a six-legged butterfly that a child in the family is creating. While text never directs the art to depict diverse individuals and family constellations, Gomez does just this in her illustrations. Interracial families are included, as are depictions of men with their arms around each other, and a Sikh man wearing a turban. This inclusive spirit supports the text’s culminating assertion that “One is one and everyone. One earth. One world. One family.”

A visually striking, engaging picture book that sends the message that everyone counts. (Picture book. 3-6)