New shoes and a fear of dogs ordinarily do not go hand-in- hand, but they fit neatly into the plot of this first solo work from Golembe (illustrator of Jama Kim Rattigan's The Woman in the Moon, 1996, etc.), using her familiar sparkling tropical palette. ``Hot bananas!'' exclaims Molly when she discovers that her turquoise shoes with purple bows and pink and yellow stars are magic; all previous fear of dogs vanishes in a snap. Meandering down a blue lane from a cantaloupe-colored school past a purple tree, Molly's steps are as ``light as pink flamingoes.'' Soon every canine in the neighborhood makes friends with Molly; they troop along behind her or wait on the porch. Molly even festoons the school's halls with pictures she has painted of dogs for parents' night. Her courage is tested when she outgrows her shoes, but she overcomes the dog-induced shaky knees. Children who have clutched their teddy bears or favorite blankets will readily recognize the spell cast by the shoes, playing the role of the universal security object. It's a compact story emotionally, unfolding nimbly from Molly's seventh birthday to her eighth. Not surprisingly, the coup de grÉce arrives that day in the form of a puppy dubbed Magic. The last line of the book lets readers in on the author's secret: This is a story about Golembe. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-395-81662-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
The runaway cookie in this Mexican bakery is a soft, brown, stubby-tailed piglet as impertinently bold and smug in his continual escape as his Gingerbread Boy cousin. “Chase me! Chase me down the street. But this is one piggy you won’t get to eat! / ¡Córrele, córrele! ¡Y Córrele más! ¡Soy el cochinito que jamás comerás!” This bouncy dual refrain extends the familiar cumulative text, rendered in both English and Spanish, as piggy manages to elude Marta the baker, Lorenzo the mechanic, Mamá Nita the beautician, Joaquín the telephone repairman and a host of other neighborhood adults—until he is outsmarted by Rosa, a little girl on her way to school, who foxily “helps him” cross the street. Safely tucked into her backpack, piggy is both a welcome surprise and an excuse for Rosa’s lateness to class. Deep opaque acrylic paintings of a colorful barrio and its residents in pursuit add the right amount of cultural flavor to this vivid Latino retelling. Recipe appended. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: Nov. 30, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-55885-586-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Piñata Books/Arte Público
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2010
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