Atkinson’s jungle denizens will easily charm one and all.
“Come to Maxwell’s Barbershop! / For a trim or for a chop!”
This monkey barber is up to any tonsorial challenge. First, a baboon swings in with locks so lengthy a mouse, cardinal, parrot, toucan, tiger kitten, koala, warthog, crocodile, zebra, and hippo have taken up residence! “After many snips it’s less a home / and more a place to run a comb.” Next comes a lion with an untamed mane. Maxwell works his magic and says, as he does to all his customers, “And before you go, might I say, / Your hair’s the best I’ve seen today!” After trimming a bear’s beastly beard, a sad, bald elephant arrives. What can Maxwell do to warm the poor pachyderm’s cold noggin? After a night of thinking, he comes up with the perfect solution. Canadian author/illustrator Atkinson’s sprightly, enthusiastic monkey barber will please readers as much as he does his customers. The bright, colorful illustrations are full of action and expressive animals and dotted with dialogue bubbles that advance the rhyme. Fun for a jungle or a hairy storytime or as bibliotherapy for tots scared of the barber. (The bewigged elephant’s unfortunate resemblance to Donald Trump may take some readers aback, but that association may fade over time.)
Atkinson’s jungle denizens will easily charm one and all. (Picture book. 2-7)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-77147-103-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
Young readers will be “antsy” to join the hero on her satisfying escapade.
An ant explores her world.
Addie Ant’s ready for adventure. Despite some trepidation about leaving the Tomato Bed, where she lives with her aunt, she plucks up her courage and ventures forth across the garden to the far side of the shed. On her journey, she meets her pal Lewis Ladybug, who greets her warmly, points the way, and offers sage advice. When Addie arrives at her destination, she’s welcomed by lovely Beatrix Butterfly and enjoys an “ant-tastic” helping of watermelon. Beatrix also provides Addie with take-home treats and a map for the “Cricket Express,” which will take her straight home. Arriving at the terminal, Addie’s delighted to meet another friend, Cleo Cricket, whose carriage service returns Addie home in “two hops.” After eating a warm tomato soup dinner, Addie falls asleep and dreams of future exploits. Adorable though not terribly original, this story brims with sensuous pleasures, both textual and visual. Kids who declare that they dislike fruits or veggies may find their mouths watering at the mentions and sights of luscious tomatoes, peas, beans, watermelons, berries, and other foodstuffs; insect-averse readers may likewise think differently after encountering these convivial, wide-eyed characters. And those flowers and herbs everywhere! The highlights are the colors that burst from the pages. Addie’s an endearing, empowering character who reassures children they’ll be able to take those first independent steps successfully.
Young readers will be “antsy” to join the hero on her satisfying escapade. (author’s note about ants) (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 9, 2024
ISBN: 9781797228914
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable.
You think you know shapes? Animals? Blend them together, and you might see them both a little differently!
What a mischievous twist on a concept book! With wordplay and a few groan-inducing puns, Neal creates connections among animals and shapes that are both unexpected and so seemingly obvious that readers might wonder why they didn’t see them all along. Of course, a “lazy turtle” meeting an oval would create the side-splitting combo of a “SLOW-VAL.” A dramatic page turn transforms a deeply saturated, clean-lined green oval by superimposing a head and turtle shell atop, with watery blue ripples completing the illusion. Minimal backgrounds and sketchy, impressionistic detailing keep the focus right on the zany animals. Beginning with simple shapes, the geometric forms become more complicated as the book advances, taking readers from a “soaring bird” that meets a triangle to become a “FLY-ANGLE” to a “sleepy lion” nonagon “YAWN-AGON.” Its companion text, Animal Colors, delves into color theory, this time creating entirely hybrid animals, such as the “GREEN WHION” with maned head and whale’s tail made from a “blue whale and a yellow lion.” It’s a compelling way to visualize color mixing, and like Animal Shapes, it’s got verve. Who doesn’t want to shout out that a yellow kangaroo/green moose blend is a “CHARTREUSE KANGAMOOSE”?
Innovative and thoroughly enjoyable. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0534-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
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