Check it out! (Picture book. 3-7)
What will Little Card be?
Every card has a job. Wide Card’s a postcard who gets to travel. Round Card’s a price tag, and Tiny Card’s a prize ticket. Only Little Card and Long Card don’t know what they’ll be. When a letter arrives telling “L.C.” to report to birthday-card training, Little Card thinks it’s addressed to him. He loves birthday-card school: the surprises, the cake, the games, the presents, and mostly the songs. When Long Card informs him that their letters got mixed up, Little Card learns his real job will be as a library card. After some small trouble with loudness, Little Card learns all about the library, along with Alex, the little girl he’ll belong to. They play games, snack, and read a rainbow of books. And since Little Card loves to sing, he sings a library song. Librarian Miss Penny gives him a gold star. But Little Card believes library day only comes once a year (like birthdays)…then Alex tells him Library Day can be six days a week every week! Fantastic! Harper’s addition to the intro-to-library canon, with its anthropomorphic card cast, is a goofy winner. Raff’s mixed-media collages, digitally colored, are a bright, perfect match for Little Card’s excitement about all things library. Alex is a brown-haired white girl, and Miss Penny is a gray-haired African-American woman with groovy boots.
Check it out! (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-7485-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015
A disappointing follow-up.
Inventor Izzy Gizmo is back in this sequel to her eponymous debut (2017).
While busily inventing one day, Izzy receives an invitation from the Genius Guild to their annual convention. Though Izzy’s “inventions…don’t always work,” Grandpa (apparently her sole caregiver) encourages her to go. The next day they undertake a long journey “over fields, hills, and waves” and “mile after mile” to isolated Technoff Isle. There, Izzy finds she must compete against four other kids to create the most impressive machine. The colorful, detail-rich illustrations chronicle how poor Izzy is thwarted at every turn by Abi von Lavish, a Veruca Salt–esque character who takes all the supplies for herself. But when Abi abandons her project, Izzy salvages the pieces and decides to take Grandpa’s advice to create a machine that “can really be put to good use.” A frustrated Izzy’s impatience with a friend almost foils her chance at the prize, but all’s well that ends well. There’s much to like: Brown-skinned inventor girl Izzy is an appealing character, it’s great to see a nurturing brown-skinned male caregiver, the idea of an “Invention Convention” is fun, and a sustainable-energy invention is laudable. However, these elements don’t make up for rhymes that often feel forced and a lackluster story.
A disappointing follow-up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-164-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series.
Another creature is on the loose.
The long-running series continues its successful formula with this Hallmark card of a book, which features bright illustrations and catchy rhymes. This time, the mythical creature the racially diverse children set out to catch is an absent mom who does it all (lists of descriptors include the words banker, caregiver, nurse, doctor, driver, chef, housekeeper, teacher, entertainer, playmate, laundry service, problem solver, handywoman, cleaner, and alarm clock) but doesn’t seem to have a job outside the home and is inexplicably a dinosaur. As the children prepare gifts and a meal for her, the text becomes an ode to the skills the Mamasaurus possesses (“Day or night she’s always there. / She meets every wish and need”) and values she instills (“Sometimes life can mean hard work,” “kindness matters,” and “what counts is doing your best”). This well-intentioned selection veers into cliche generously sprinkled with saccharine but manages to redeem itself with its appreciation for mothers and all that they may do. Endpapers include a “to” and “from” page framed in a heart, as well as a page where young gift givers or recipients can draw a picture of their Mamasaurus.
A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781728274300
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
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