The immersive illustrations and cute critters make up for the pat lesson on giving thanks.
When Pearl the pup and friend Squirrel learn about Thanksgiving, they find out just how much they have to appreciate.
Unlikely friends and cardboard-box roommates Pearl and Squirrel are opposites in many ways: Squirrel prefers the finer things in life, and Pearl is a little less fussy. After Stan the food cart man explains Thanksgiving as “when you share what you’re thankful for with family and friends,” they decide to count up everything they are thankful for. A sudden rainstorm makes them less than thankful, though. After Stan (who has brown skin and curly dark hair) comes to the rescue with an abrupt adoption, they realize they’re most grateful for their “new family and their own place to belong.” Ryan Ehrenberg’s cartoon illustrations—the real heart of the book—envelop readers in a sense of season and place. There are lovely scenes of city skylines and bridges, and the feeling of fall is tucked away on nearly every page in piles of leaves at the park and vibrant orange trees and bushes. Darling touches like a string of soda can tabs that decorate Pearl and Squirrel’s cardboard-box home give the book a nice richness. The story is sweet and insubstantial, a fairly conventional approach to presenting the concept of Thanksgiving to very young readers, emphasizing practicing gratitude while entirely avoiding the holiday’s complicated origins. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 89.2% of actual size.)
The immersive illustrations and cute critters make up for the pat lesson on giving thanks. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-338-59209-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A predictable series entry, mitigated as usual by the protagonists’ perennially energetic positivity.
A holiday-centered spinoff from the duo behind the inspired The Day the Crayons Quit (2013).
With Green Crayon on vacation, how can the waxy ones pull off a colorful St. Patrick’s Day celebration with Duncan, their (unseen) owner? Through their signature combo of cooperation and unwavering enthusiasm, of course. Blue and Yellow collaborate on a field of shamrocks that blends—however spottily—into green. Nearly invisible White Crayon supplies an otherwise unclothed light-skinned leprechaun with undies, and Orange draws a pair of pants that match the wee creature’s iconic beard and hair. Pink applies colors to a vest, and Purple, a natty jacket and boots. Chunky Toddler Crayon contributes a “perfect” scribbly blue hat; Beige and Brown team up for the leprechaun’s harp. In arguably the best bit, Black exuberantly manifests a decidedly unvariegated rainbow, while Gold’s pot of coins is right on the money, hue-wise. Their ardor undimmed by the holiday’s missing customary color, everyone assembles to party. Though the repartee among the crayons isn’t as developed as in previous outings, the book hews close to Daywalt and Jeffers’ winning formula, and there’s still enough here to keep readers chuckling. And, in a droll “wait for it” moment nicely calibrated for storytime, Green returns from vacation, sunglasses and suitcase in hand: “Did I miss anything while I was gone?” (The cover illustrations do hint at some Green-inflected remediation.)
A predictable series entry, mitigated as usual by the protagonists’ perennially energetic positivity. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624333
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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