This stowaway is here to stay as a new Christmas classic.
A larger-than-life cat’s face with glowing, green eyes peeks out of a red sack on the cover of this story about a stowaway in Santa’s sleigh, with those compelling eyes silently begging the reader to open the cover.
The appealing feline star of the story is a calico cat named Slipper. She hears footsteps in “the darkest hour of the night,” and in a stunning double-page spread, a nearly life-sized Slipper stalks the dark house ready to pounce. She finds that the source of the noise is Mr. Furry Boots, a familiar figure in a red suit and black boots trimmed with fluffy, white fur. Slipper slyly slips into Santa’s sack and is inadvertently taken back to his house at the North Pole. In a clever play on words, Santa’s wife, Ms. Furry Boots, shakes out the almost-empty toy sack: “And she let the cat out of the bag!” (Mr. and Ms. Furry Boots are both white.) Slipper is soon homesick and sets off into the dark to try to find her way home. In a touching rescue, Santa finds the sad cat sitting in the sleigh and kindly flies her in first-class fashion back to her own house on Christmas night. Exceptionally striking illustrations use unusual perspectives and dramatic pacing, with the dark, nighttime settings skillfully creating suspense and mood. A subtle focus on feet includes the cat’s name, Santa’s boots, several pairs of elf feet in pointed shoes bedecked with bells, and a pair of furry red slippers that make Slipper the cat long for home. The succinct, perfectly paced text makes every carefully chosen word count.
This stowaway is here to stay as a new Christmas classic. (Picture book. 2-7)Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-48174-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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