An engaging artistic and educational glimpse into nature.
A group of kids visits a nature preserve in this picture book.
Guided by a docent, some children with diverse skin tones explore “a park where / animals and plants are / protected.” They see such creatures as woodpeckers, ants, and even a California slender salamander. As they walk through the habitats, they spot animal tracks and greenery like “pine, fir and maple trees.” The book offers educational tidbits throughout. At one point, the kids see a spider’s dwelling: “We find a turret spider’s home made with sticky spider silk and mud. / When an insect comes close it will / get stuck. The turret spider rushes / out of its hiding place to eat it.” The children “search for pollywogs” in the “riparian habitat” and visit the “hot, dry chaparral habitat,” where “plants…live without much water.” Later, they observe “peregrine falcons circl[ing] above the waterfall.” Although they would love to stay, it’s soon time for the youngsters to head back to the bus. But they promise to “come back soon.” Using kid-friendly language and descriptions (“Yellow-green banana slugs live on the forest floor”), Gummer’s story will inspire readers to appreciate nature in their own lives. Children will enjoy following the group’s adventures. Featuring fun patterns and textures, the author’s fantastic collages creatively portray the preserve’s habitats. Scenes offer vivid depictions of plants and wildlife. The illustrator uses striking materials, including fabrics, string, and papers, in assorted colors.
An engaging artistic and educational glimpse into nature.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of...
An international story tackles a serious global issue with Reynolds’ characteristic visual whimsy.
Gie Gie—aka Princess Gie Gie—lives with her parents in Burkina Faso. In her kingdom under “the African sky, so wild and so close,” she can tame wild dogs with her song and make grass sway, but despite grand attempts, she can neither bring the water closer to home nor make it clean. French words such as “maintenant!” (now!) and “maman” (mother) and local color like the karite tree and shea nuts place the story in a French-speaking African country. Every morning, Gie Gie and her mother perch rings of cloth and large clay pots on their heads and walk miles to the nearest well to fetch murky, brown water. The story is inspired by model Georgie Badiel, who founded the Georgie Badiel Foundation to make clean water accessible to West Africans. The details in Reynolds’ expressive illustrations highlight the beauty of the West African landscape and of Princess Gie Gie, with her cornrowed and beaded hair, but will also help readers understand that everyone needs clean water—from the children of Burkina Faso to the children of Flint, Michigan.
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of potable water. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-17258-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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