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YOU'RE A RUDE PIG, BERTIE

At best a discussion starter about rudeness, though children may be mildly amused by Bertie’s snide disses.

In this pointed outing, a pig who habitually insults everyone he meets has an epiphany after no one comes to his party. Readers after social or psychological complexity need not apply.

The plot is as simple as it is simplistic of resolution. Having left, as usual, a trail of enraged passersby—“Dreadful hair today, Mrs. Harley!” “Without your annoying husband, Mrs. Block?” “Joseph! Your bad smell never ceases to amaze me!”—on his daily walk, Bertie changes his tune when he meets Ruby, “the cutest rabbit he had ever seen.” Having complimented her ears, he rushes home to plan an elaborate party for her. Devastated when no one responds to his snotty invitations, he goes to bed, dreams of being berated for rudeness by his toothbrush, and remorsefully sends out revised invitations with apologies when he wakes. Mrs. Harley doesn’t come (she “still held a grudge”), but everyone else does, and it’s all a great success. Using a pale but high-contrast palette and surface textures of crayons and thickly brushed watercolors, Boldt fashions busy pastel backdrops for a pink pig with a big red nose. He struts past the all-animal cast to, eventually, a sumptuous party scene centered on pig and bunny making goo-goo eyes as they dance together.

At best a discussion starter about rudeness, though children may be mildly amused by Bertie’s snide disses. (Picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2013

ISBN: 978-0-7358-4152-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: NorthSouth

Review Posted Online: June 11, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2013

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THE DUCK WHO DIDN'T LIKE WATER

Damp.

A good friend can change your life.

Duck loves settling down with a hot beverage when he reads, but that’s the only liquid for him—he doesn’t like getting wet. As a result, he dresses in a yellow rain slicker constantly and spends rainy days inside with the shutters drawn. This solitary existence continues until one night when a particularly bad storm creates a hole in Duck’s roof. When he sets out to investigate repairing it, he comes face to face with a lost frog on his doorstep. Even though Frog loves the water, the two develop a friendship through a shared love of reading. Frog eventually finds his way home, but the two have bonded, and Duck invites Frog to join him as a new roommate. Although the story’s soft cartoon illustrations are amusing—Duck peddling his bicycle in his slicker, boots, and sou’wester will elicit smiles—they can’t save the superficial message of the story. Duck’s phobia is never directly addressed, but once Frog moves in permanently, the rain slicker vanishes, so there’s a bit of a visual resolution. Books addressing new friendships are always needed, but the characters need to be developed to attract and inspire readers. This pale imitation of Oliver Jeffers’ Lost and Found (2006) doesn’t have the depth needed to carry the message. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-15.8-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Damp. (Picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: March 30, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-5344-8917-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

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EVERGREEN

A spellbinding tale that will never brown or fade with time.

Soup is always the correct solution.

Evergreen, a young squirrel who lives high in a tree in Buckthorn Forest, is afraid of most things, but top of the list is thunderstorms. When her mother, who makes magical soup, asks her to take an acorn full of soup to Granny Oak, who is ill with the flu, Evergreen is afraid that she won’t be brave enough to do it. But she knows she must—and that she must be careful not to spill a drop, as “Granny Oak will need every bit of it to get better.” Setting off, the scared squirrel encounters a menagerie of adventures and forest creatures in her journey. It’s a wild, imaginative read and one that twists and turns like a forest path, with unexpected surprises along the way. Cordell is a masterful storyteller, and readers will love following Evergreen’s journey as she grows into a more confident squirrel. The artwork is the real star of the show, however; there’s a hint of Sendak in the characters’ humorous expressions and in the timeless pen-and-watercolor backgrounds that cry out to be examined in detail. Educators and caregivers will love reading this story aloud in installments, and readers will adore seeing what Evergreen encounters in her travels. A hint of future stories will tantalize readers, who will close the book eager for a new volume to devour.

A spellbinding tale that will never brown or fade with time. (Early chapter book. 6-8)

Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2023

ISBN: 978-1-250-31717-9

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022

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