Cozy fun for the right audience.
Following in a hoary tradition, another artist sets his work to Moore’s classic Christmas poem.
A modern home is the setting for this rendition. A dog sleeps curled up in the hallway beside boots, children’s drawings, and a shovel, all backlit by the lights of a Christmas tree. A Christmas elf sits on the mantle above the stockings along with a portrait of a hooded woman holding a glowing star. The White family lies sleeping until the male narrator is awoken by the clatter from outdoors. He and the dog rush to the window and share the magical moment of spotting Santa driving his reindeer. They watch as Santa lands in the fireplace, distributes toys, and sits with his pipe and enjoys cookies before shooting back up the chimney and flying off into the night. The illustrations use saturated color, sharp lines, and bright highlights for an animation-style sheen. Close-ups of Santa depict a round, pink-faced, blue-eyed man who will appear jolly to some readers, unsettling to others. With an opening scene that’s familiar (to White, middle-class readers) and pets and mice sprinkled throughout, this visual tale will delight those who like to pair classic texts with more modern settings. Those contemporary trappings aside, this book’s sensibilities are in tune with the original text’s times. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Cozy fun for the right audience. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-8445-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers.
The bestselling series (How to Catch an Elf, 2016, etc.) about capturing mythical creatures continues with a story about various ways to catch the Easter Bunny as it makes its annual deliveries.
The bunny narrates its own story in rhyming text, beginning with an introduction at its office in a manufacturing facility that creates Easter eggs and candy. The rabbit then abruptly takes off on its delivery route with a tiny basket of eggs strapped to its back, immediately encountering a trap with carrots and a box propped up with a stick. The narrative focuses on how the Easter Bunny avoids increasingly complex traps set up to catch him with no explanation as to who has set the traps or why. These traps include an underground tunnel, a fluorescent dance floor with a hidden pit of carrots, a robot bunny, pirates on an island, and a cannon that shoots candy fish, as well as some sort of locked, hazardous site with radiation danger. Readers of previous books in the series will understand the premise, but others will be confused by the rabbit’s frenetic escapades. Cartoon-style illustrations have a 1960s vibe, with a slightly scary, bow-tied bunny with chartreuse eyes and a glowing palette of neon shades that shout for attention.
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3817-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
When Scaredy Squirrel plans a party, he concentrates on maximum security, not maximum fun. His checklist: "Confirm date of birth; pick a safe location; choose party colors; get tuxedo dry-cleaned; prepare cake recipe; practice breathing (to blow up balloons/blow out candles); mail party invitation to myself." That's right—there’s only one guest at Scaredy's birthday party, and it's himself. But when his chum Buddy sends him a birthday card, he reconsiders his guest list to include his pal, even making the momentous decision to hold his party on the ground instead of in his tree. Replete with the lists and diagrams that are this OCD rodent's hallmarks, the story unfolds with both humor and some useful etiquette tips. From conversational gambits (good: "If you were a tree, what type of tree would you be?"; bad: "Is that a muskrat on your head? Oops... it's a toupee") to the "dos and don'ts of partying" (do: sit quietly; don't: double-dip), kids will find much to laugh at and think about. Typically (for a Scaredy adventure), despite a plan so complete it includes tooth-brushing breaks, a surprise happens—party animals show up! Watt’s wry digital illustrations make the most of the perceived mayhem, using a host of graphic conventions to tell her story. There's no question it's a formula by now, but it's still a winning one. Many happy returns, Scaredy. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-55453-468-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Jan. 31, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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