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
It’s a lucky thing indeed that this book is as great a joy to read aloud as it is.
One duck’s luck is another wolf’s disaster in this tale of tragedy averted.
Right from the start, Susan is convinced that she is by far the unluckiest of ducks, since the roller skates she ordered turned out to be two sizes too big. Just at that moment, however, a well-dressed wolf appears at her door, informing her that she’s the winner of a big beautiful soup pot. And so it goes: Each time Susan feels that her luck’s run out, the wolf reappears with some new (and edible) soup-related prize. Long before poor Susan does, kids will realize the price of the wolf’s gifts. Still, when the finale arrives, it turns out that each “unlucky” thing to happen to Susan helps her to survive another day. Sharp-eyed readers may notice a tiny bug responsible for at least two of Susan’s missing items, also aiding in her deliverance from the wolf’s hungry maw. The pure clean lines and limited palette lend a distinctly ’50s vibe to the proceedings, while the text makes for a charming storytime. Meanwhile, the narrative has shades of Keiko Kasza’s My Lucky Day (2003) and Mo Willems’ That Is NOT a Good Idea (2013). Few may be surprised by the resolution, but the familiarity is much of the story’s charm.
It’s a lucky thing indeed that this book is as great a joy to read aloud as it is. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9780593649770
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
Fish sporting bright colors and broadly brushed patterns flash across solid blue color fields, as Little Fish introduces finny friends, from “spotty fish, stripy fish, happy fish, gripy fish,” to “eye fish, shy fish, fly fish, sky fish.” Cousins slips in several opportunities for counting, along with all the color and pattern recognition practice, and has Little Fish close on an intimate note, with “the one I love the best,” his mom, coming in for a smooch. Preschoolers will happily dive into this oversized cousin to Lois Ehlert’s Fish Eyes (1990), and Cousins’ own Maisy’s Rainbow Dream (2003). (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: June 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-7636-2741-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2005
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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