Boggs's first book is about W.D., a dog who wonders about everything. From the moment he wakes up in the morning until the time he sleeps at night, W.D muses over typical events in the canine and human world. ``He wonders what makes the toast pop up from the toaster. W.D. wonders if he should chew on his bone, or on Kate's old red slipper. He wonders if he smells bad enough for Kate's mother to say, `Into the tub, W.D.' '' The repetition becomes tedious; the dog's ponderings never amount to a story. Despite that, the W.D. of the pictures has all the personality of fellow bull terriers Boodil and Monsieur Bibot's Marcel. Winsome, scratchy pastels have a smudged, tactile, leaf-rubbing child appeal. Forthright pencil outlines, flat perspectives, and crayon-box colors show W.D. in all his moods: hopeful, wistful, intelligent, content, sleepy. Boggs has a nice sense of humor in this attempt to offer the inner life of man's best friend, but the story ends on the same note that launched it, and without the inside-a-dog's-mind hilarity of Susan Meddaugh's Martha books. The pictures, on the other hand, invite viewers to sail into the dog's imagination, complete with midnight blue endpapers, a heavenly landscape of doggy dreamland where dog bones fly among the stars and collars are not needed. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 1998
ISBN: 0-689-81376-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1998
This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to...
A hug shouldn’t require an instruction manual—but some do.
A porcupine can frighten even the largest animal. In this picture book, a bear and a deer, along with a small rabbit, each run away when they hear eight simple words and their name: “I need a hug. Will you cuddle me,…?” As they flee, each utters a definitive refusal that rhymes with their name. The repetitive structure gives Blabey plenty of opportunities for humor, because every animal responds to the question with an outlandish, pop-eyed expression of panic. But the understated moments are even funnier. Each animal takes a moment to think over the request, and the drawings are nuanced enough that readers can see the creatures react with slowly building anxiety or, sometimes, a glassy stare. These silent reaction shots not only show exquisite comic timing, but they make the rhymes in the text feel pleasingly subtle by delaying the final line in each stanza. The story is a sort of fable about tolerance. It turns out that a porcupine can give a perfectly adequate hug when its quills are flat and relaxed, but no one stays around long enough to find out except for an animal that has its own experiences with intolerance: a snake. It’s an apt, touching moral, but the climax may confuse some readers as they try to figure out the precise mechanics of the embrace.
This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to pet a porcupine.” (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-29710-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2018
A group of farm animals is drawn together by an unusually bright star shining over a stable in their neighborhood in this sentimental Nativity story. The narrative focuses on a gray kitten who is tenderly cared for by his mother in their home in a barn. They follow the other animals to the stable under the star, and as a group they enter and stand before the straw-filled manger in the final spread. The kitten describes his great happiness at this special baby, but unfortunately the baby is not shown in the illustration, which may leave readers confused and dissatisfied. Though Mendez’s large-format illustrations are appealing and the simple story is accessible to preschoolers, the ending demonstrates a lack of knowledge of the needs of this age group, who need to see to believe. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-545-10486-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2009
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