Entertaining in premise and execution, this is certain to inspire play among the pots.
Browne’s debut starring his real-life pit bull (Marlo, 2017) featured the canine’s underwater fantasy; this sequel sends the pooch back in time.
The tale opens with the dog snoozing next to a grouping of houseplants. He snuggles a toy dinosaur. Two sentences launch the rest of the story, told almost entirely in pictures: “Marlo awoke from his afternoon nap to a very strange sight. / He decided to investigate.” Looking across the gutter, he spies a small, winged creature carrying a bundle of twigs and disappearing into a newly sprouted living-room forest. A note on the copyright page had asked readers to help Marlo find both that animal and two tiny green beings. This hunt provides the motivation for and much of the fun in moving forward. Browne is adept at building surprises into his pen, watercolor, and digitally colored compositions. Varying perspectives display a vibrant world with fanciful trees and magenta or lavender beasts sporting decorative patterns. The going is calm among the herbivores, but the pace picks up when a gigantic carnivore appears, first seen only as a giant foot—its owner clearly towers over Marlo and the other dinos. The protagonist clings to a swift runner during the resultant stampede. When calm returns, the new friends use sticks gathered by the tiny green animals to build a rocket that propels Marlo home, where his last, bemused gaze is at readers from behind a fern.
Entertaining in premise and execution, this is certain to inspire play among the pots. (Picture books. 3-6)Pub Date: March 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-244115-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Nov. 21, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
A heartwarming story about facing fears and acceptance.
A boy with wings learns to be himself and inspires others like him to soar, too.
Norman, a “perfectly normal” boy, never dreamed he might grow wings. Afraid of what his parents might say, he hides his new wings under a big, stuffy coat. Although the coat hides his wings from the world, Norman no longer finds joy in bathtime, playing at the park, swimming, or birthday parties. With the gentle encouragement of his parents, who see his sadness, Norman finds the courage to come out of hiding and soar. Percival (The Magic Looking Glass, 2017, etc.) depicts Norman with light skin and dark hair. Black-and-white illustrations show his father with dark skin and hair and his mother as white. The contrast of black-and-white illustrations with splashes of bright color complements the story’s theme. While Norman tries to be “normal,” the world and people around him look black and gray, but his coat stands out in yellow. Birds pop from the page in pink, green, and blue, emphasizing the joy and beauty of flying free. The final spread, full of bright color and multiracial children in flight, sets the mood for Norman’s realization on the last page that there is “no such thing as perfectly normal,” but he can be “perfectly Norman.”
A heartwarming story about facing fears and acceptance. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: May 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-68119-785-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
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