The menus, navigation buttons (more blocks of wood in the shape of arrows) and the narration are all effective. But it's the...
A boy makes up fanciful tales about what happened to his unappetizing dinner items in this distinctly designed, playful app.
When Timmy's mother gives him a series of items to eat, including parsnip bake, radish tart and the titular Brussels sprouts, he invents a series of imaginary animals that come in and devour the food so he doesn't have to. Told in rhyme ("A leopard ate my liver pie / Garnished with a tsetse fly. / Honest, Mom, I don't know why / That leopard ate my liver pie!") and illustrated by sleek, well-animated art, the story is one readers will relate to, given some of the items Timmy tries to pass off to his made-up menagerie. His mom, of course, catches on and tells him about the delicious desserts he'll miss due to similar pseudo circumstances. The interactive elements of the app are even cleverer than they seem; on one of the first pages, Timmy (and readers) flicks Brussels sprouts into the mouth of a hungry bear. Miss the bear's mouth, and he seems a bit dejected. Get it closer, and the bear chomps down. The illustrative style makes the app stand out from more cartoonish apps; Timmy's indoor winter wear, the heavy wood and concrete surfaces and even the hairstyles suggest a Scandinavian setting. Older readers may begin to wonder, with all the talk of hungry animals and the unusual menu, if Timmy is being raised by former IKEA designers gone survivalist-rogue.
The menus, navigation buttons (more blocks of wood in the shape of arrows) and the narration are all effective. But it's the app's distinctive art style and the playful, hungry animals that make it worth a look. (iPad storybook app. 2-6)Pub Date: July 4, 2011
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Bite Studio Ltd
Review Posted Online: Aug. 9, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2011
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
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A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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