Zorro and Mister Bud are quite a pair; readers will hope for more unpredictable but amusing adventures with them.
Zorro the pug and his pal, Mister Bud, pair up again for their third amusingly understated adventure (Zorro Gets an Outfit, 2012, etc.), this time focusing on Mister Bud’s unpleasant stint wearing an Elizabethan collar while a sore spot heals.
Every dog owner is familiar with the necessary but traumatic cone-shaped collar that prevents a dog from licking an injury or biting at post-surgical stitches. Mister Bud, a large, big-nosed dog of indeterminate breed, has developed a “hot spot,” which he aggravates through licking at it overnight. His owner tries some healing ointment, to no avail, and finally straps on the hated cone when she has to leave for work. Poor Mister Bud spends a miserably uncomfortable day in the cone, unable to see or play or eat properly, and his sidekick Zorro the pug makes things worse by teasing Mister Bud and stealing his favorite stuffed toy. A succinct, masterfully paced text is filled with humorous taunts from Zorro and hilarious descriptions of Mister Bud’s misery. Quirky watercolor illustrations show Zorro’s feisty personality and Mister’s Bud’s difficulties with the cone in vignettes set off by lots of white space, spotlighting the canine antics. In a satisfying conclusion, Mister Bud receives extra attention from the owner and a special treat, which he shares with Zorro despite his pal’s less-than-exemplary behavior during Mister’s Bud cone crisis.
Zorro and Mister Bud are quite a pair; readers will hope for more unpredictable but amusing adventures with them. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: June 3, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-8088-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts.
In this latest slice in the Food Group series, Humble Pie learns to stand up to a busy friend who’s taking advantage of his pal’s hard work on the sidelines.
Jake the Cake and Humble Pie are good friends. Where Pie is content to toil in the background, Jake happily shines in the spotlight. Alert readers will notice that Pie’s always right there, too, getting A-pluses and skiing expertly just behind—while also doing the support work that keeps every school and social project humming. “Fact: Nobody notices pie when there’s cake nearby!” When the two friends pair up for a science project, things begin well. But when the overcommitted Jake makes excuse after excuse, showing up late or not at all, a panicked Pie realizes that they won’t finish in time. When Jake finally shows up on the night before the project’s due, Pie courageously confronts him. “And for once, I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it.” The friends talk it out and collaborate through the night for the project’s successful presentation in class the next day. John and Oswald’s winning recipe—plentiful puns and delightful visual jokes—has yielded another treat here. The narration does skew didactic as it wraps up: “There’s nothing wrong with having a tough conversation, asking for help, or making sure you’re being treated fairly.” But it’s all good fun, in service of some gentle lessons about social-emotional development.
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780063469730
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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