Funny and flip, like Saturday morning cartoons.
Everyone knows the Big Bad Wolf is…well bad, right?
When the Three Little Pigs’ houses are trashed, who in Fairylandia is the prime suspect? It’s Wolfgang, the Big Bad Wolf (though don’t call him that; he’s trying to reform—he likes gardening these days). Capt. Kreplach, captain of Prince Tyrone’s guard, gives Wolfgang until sundown to prove his innocence…despite the total absence of evidence of his guilt beyond his reputation. To avoid a lifetime diet of porridge in the prince’s dungeon, Wolfgang starts investigating. When he arrives at Dieter Pig’s house of bricks, Wolfgang finds it cleaned of all evidence by the Little Pigs’ mother. (Incidentally, the “little pigs” are not particularly little, and they run the successful PorkerBuilt construction company.) His investigation techniques earn him a mop in the face from said mother. No one in Fairylandia is likely to treat him as other than suspect No.1…until Ferkel Pig, the Three Little Pigs’ eager little brother, offers to assist. The two reluctant comrades set out across Fairylandia, but will they find the actual culprit in time? Hale, author/illustrator of the successful, Edgar-nominated Chet Gecko series, clearly has a lot of fun with this dip into fairy tales for his new series of humorous mysteries. A few of the jokes might fly over the heads of the target audience, but that just makes this a great read-together chapter book.
Funny and flip, like Saturday morning cartoons. (Fantasy/mystery. 6-9)Pub Date: Jan. 27, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-545-66537-7
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2014
Cool beans indeed.
A supposed “has-bean” shows that coolness has more to do with deeds than demeanor.
Offering further moral instruction in this leguminous cousin to The Bad Seed (2017) and The Good Egg (2019), Oswald portrays three beans—each a different species but all sporting boss shades, fly threads, and that requisite air of nonchalance—bringing the cool to streets, hallways, playgrounds, and Leguma Beach. Meanwhile, a fourth (a scraggly-haired chickpea), whose efforts to echo the look and the ’tude have fallen flat, takes on the role of nerdy narrator to recall “olden days” when they all hung out in the same pod. Still, despite rolling separate ways (nobody’s fault: “That’s just how it is sometimes. You spend less time together, even though you’re not totally sure why”), when the uncool bean drops a lunch tray, skins a kid knee on the playground, or just needs a hint in class, one of the others is always on the scene toot suite. No biggie. And passing those casual acts of kindness forward? “Now that’s cool.” John’s good-hearted text makes some hay with the bean puns while Oswald’s pipe-stemmed limbs, googly eyes, and accessories give these anthropomorphic legumes lots of personality. As a fava to young audiences, pair with Jamie Michalak and Frank Kolar’s Frank and Bean (2019) for a musical combination.
Cool beans indeed. (Picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-295452-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A fun series opener with a feisty protagonist who’ll keep readers on their toes.
Bowling introduces the outspoken, armless narrator of her Life as a Cactus series to younger readers.
Eight-year-old Aven Green doesn’t need arms to be a good private investigator; her feet work just fine. In fact, all those extra arm cells went to her brain instead—at least, that’s her hypothesis. So when somebody starts stealing food at school, she’s on the case. But then her great-grandma’s dog, Smitty, goes missing, and then new student Sujata arrives—looking mysteriously sad. Can Aven’s “super-powered brain” solve three cases at the same time? The simple plot, peppered with humorous malapropisms and leaps of kid logic, is primarily a showcase for Aven’s precocious personality. Witty, stubborn, and self-confident (“I was shy once. It was on a Wednesday afternoon in kindergarten”), Aven takes her disability in stride; her classmates are also accepting. She and her friends share rowdy and gleefully gross activities, complete with “ninja” chops, flatulence, and “rainbow barf.” Her (adoptive) parents are warmly supportive, but her long-suffering teacher is perhaps too much so; her remarkable tolerance for Aven’s occasionally disruptive antics may raise some eyebrows. Perry’s black-and-white cartoon illustrations energetically depict Aven’s agile feet and mischievous grin. The tidy ending sets up another adventure; a list of Aven’s “sleuthing words” is appended. Most characters, including Aven, appear to be White; Sujata is Indian American.
A fun series opener with a feisty protagonist who’ll keep readers on their toes. (Mystery. 6-9)Pub Date: April 6, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4549-4221-4
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Sterling Children's Books
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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