A somewhat odd story, accompanied by appealing illustrations.
In author/illustrator Rodella-Purdy’s picture book, a fork has an adventure at the diner where it lives.
An unnamed fork narrates its day, starting with a relaxing sojourn in a dishwasher before a server carries it into an empty restaurant: “With the sound of footsteps and dishes clanking, it is time to go to work,” the fork notes. A baby immediately grabs it and upsettingly bangs it on a table; however, the child quickly puts the fork to use, stabbing a piece of broccoli, a squishy tomato, and a carrot, and leading the utensil to think, “Oh no! It is going to eat me!” The fork then dizzily spins through spaghetti before the baby flings it to the floor, where someone sweeps it up with a broom and treats it to another calming wash. There’s not a lot of story here, and young readers will surely have some questions; for instance, why would a fork fear being eaten? Is this its first day on the job? And who lets a small baby flail a pointy object around? However, the art is the real draw here. Rodella-Purdy’s soft watercolors are lovely to look at, and the fork’s face is remarkably expressive, effectively managing to convey distress, sadness, surprise, and the wonderful serenity of a hot bath.
A somewhat odd story, accompanied by appealing illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9781735881317
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Creative Cat Media
Review Posted Online: Oct. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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