A bare-bones, even emaciated retelling of and embellishment on “The Itsy Bitsy Spider.”
Frankie, a very tiny, brown spider, is small even compared to blades of grass and ladybugs. One day, he encounters a mysterious cave from which emanates a dripping sound. He investigates what turns out to be the spout of a rain gutter. But rather than just being washed out and climbing back again, Frankie gets to do some surfing on a leaf on the way down. No longer afraid, and equipped with beach shorts, he heads back up. The story is simple, with sparse text and pleasant-enough watercolor illustrations. But except for a few sound effects, a blasting surf riff and animations so minimal readers may not even notice they’re happening, this app offers little interaction. There’s no real navigation, just a cumbersome pop-up menu that requires tapping the screen twice to call it up. (Readers won’t even know it exists unless they happen to tap the screen twice.) All of these issues would be fine if the tale itself were truly transporting or charming, but instead, the lackluster animation, unremarkable writing and jarring music might make readers wish they were reading a better version of the original “Itsy.”
There’s nothing wrong with simplicity, but Frankie’s story and the app built around it are so spare they can’t possibly wash anyone out. (iPad storybook app. 2-6)
Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2013
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Carey Federspiel
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property.
Since a reformed Grinch is hardly any fun, this follow-up Grinches him up once more.
Those seeking more of the same, prepare to receive precisely that. Christmas is coming (again!), and the Grinch can hardly wait. He’s been patient all year, and now he can finally show the Whos down in Who-ville how much he’s changed. When the Grinch learns of a tree-decorating contest, he figures that if he wins, it’ll prove he truly has the Christmas spirit. He throws himself into the task, but when it comes time to judge the trees, the Grinch is horrified to discover that he’s received only the second-place trophy. Can Cindy-Lou Who find the words to save the day? Replicating many of the original beats and wordplay of the original, this tale feels like less a sequel and more like a vaguely rewritten variation. Meanwhile, Ruiz’s art seeks to bridge the gap between the animated Chuck Jones version of the Grinch and the one depicted in the original book. This thankless task results in a strange uncanny valley between Seuss and Jones but does allow the artist a chance to colorize everything and lend some racial diversity to the Who population (Cindy-Lou is light-skinned). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593563168
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
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