This unassuming story is an intergenerational delight.
Like the stealthy spider quietly spinning its web on a low bough, life around and on the apple tree is never static.
With each turn of the page, curious foxes, scampering squirrels, nesting birds, and cavorting bear cubs entertain a watchful owl stationed in a hollow in the trunk. The textured cover’s die-cut window nearly traverses the entire book. From the owl’s hollow to the cubs climbing the broad trunk and the squirrels and birds among its branches, multiplying cutouts reveal new critters and beg to be poked through by itchy fingers. The accompanying spare but whimsical couplets lull readers through the seasons from one winter to the next, then on to spring again. “The seasons have all come and gone. / Snow has fallen, sun has shone. // Owl sees the first new buds appear, / and so begins another year….” Teckentrup’s stylized block-print artwork focuses readers’ eyes on the myriad details of the unfolding forest scenes. On the left of each spread, the tree is brown with gold/green flecks and boasts big green apples; on the right, the mirror-image tree is rust with gold flecks and dangles red apples. Multicolored leaves change with the weather until a bare tree stands alone in drifts of snow. Adult readers will relish guiding their little ones into lessons about the seasons, colors, wildlife, and more.
This unassuming story is an intergenerational delight. (Picture book. 3-10)Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-10-193242-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
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
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