An uplifting story of animal rescue.
An orangutan family finds safety in a new home.
In her debut picture book, Ward offers young readers and listeners a simple, gentle example of the loss of jungle habitat in Sumatra and the efforts of humans to relocate the orangutans that had been living there. The story is generic, but the rescued animals at Bukit Tigapuluh National Park (Thirty Hills) are real and apparently thriving. Her account begins with a lyrical description of family life in their “emerald green forest,” which is unhappily interrupted by noise and smoke. The orangutan mother moves her family only for their lives to be disrupted again when a machine knocks down their tree. This is a scary moment, but, reassuringly, a friendly human (portrayed as Asian) leads them away. They’re rehomed in a new forest where other orangutans live and forage. There’s repetition, both in the description of approaching devastation and in the family’s activities: eating fruit, tree swinging, and building sleeping nests—salient facts about orangutan habits. The tale is enlivened by Littlewood’s colorful illustrations, which convey a remarkable sense of the lush jungle world. Full of motion, the preliminary orangutan sketches on the endpapers and in the backmatter are a nice touch. The jungle animals are portrayed realistically. The orangutan faces are very expressive, conveying sadness and terror as the machine destroys their home and, at the end, joy. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An uplifting story of animal rescue. (facts behind the story) (Informational picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781913074142
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Otter-Barry
Review Posted Online: April 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2023
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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