A solid primer on evolution doubling as a silly story of the ultimate identity crisis.
A barnyard hen gets some mind-blowing news about her ancestry.
Upon learning that she’s descended from dinosaurs, a hen shares her strong reactions with the eggs she’s been sitting on. “I used to be a dinosaur with a great and mighty roar. // My call would shake you to your bones and leave you on the floor.” The hen laments what she considers her fall from grace (“I used to be a dinosaur! / Cretaceous queen of time before”) until she has a thought: “I used to be a dinosaur. / All the scientists agree. / What if I’m still a dinosaur / ’cause that’s who I choose to be?” The hen’s dino pride ultimately finds her marching around the barnyard holding a flag depicting the stages of dino-to-hen evolution, her newly hatched chicks roaring rather than peeping behind her. Readers who want more dino facts can consult an author’s note featuring editorializing asides from the hen. Keller’s digital art is in suitably booming proportion to the hen’s big feelings; in a strong visual running joke, a giant chartreuse dino—a product of the hen’s imagination—mimics her various postures and facial expressions. (See? The two are practically indistinguishable!) A few rhymes have wonky rhythms, but it would be unsporting to expect perfection from a hen who has just been hit with head-spinning news.
A solid primer on evolution doubling as a silly story of the ultimate identity crisis. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: June 9, 2026
ISBN: 9780062890313
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: March 9, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2026
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More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
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
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BOOK REVIEW
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