An engaging and enjoyably illustrated tale of characters uniting to defeat an obnoxious opponent.
In Garcia’s illustrated children’s book, the residents of a pumpkin patch team up to outwit their corvid attackers.
In this story, pumpkins find themselves tormented by a group of crows, but they find a way to defend themselves and protect their patch. The birds, led by Corvus, avoid the nearby cornfield, which is protected by a scarecrow (“Don’t you remember, feather-brains? We can’t harass the cornfield anymore. It has the most horrendous monster lurking in its midst!” Corvus says to his underling). However, the feathered fiends delight in making themselves as annoying as possible to Fairytale Pumpkin, Knucklehead, Warty Goblin, and their fellow pumpkin neighbors. (They’re all named for real pumpkin varieties, and the book’s back matter provides more detail on their idiosyncrasies.) The pumpkins decide that the time has come for them to fight back, but they disagree over strategy. Fairytale leads a mission to ask the corn to share their scarecrow, but the vegetables are not about to give up their defense. This comes as no surprise to Warty Goblin, whose objections Fairytale rudely overrode. After she returns from the cornfield and apologizes, he organizes the pumpkins into a scarecrow of their own, which effectively chases Corvus and company out of the patch for good. There are several fine lessons in the text, involving the value of mutual aid; the importance of forgiving others, rather than nursing resentments; and the need to listen to wise elders. All are rendered with welcome subtlety. Knoetze and De Vries’ full-color cartoon illustrations do an excellent job of bringing the text to life, relating the motions and emotions of the anthropomorphized but still plantlike pumpkins. The crows aren’t the most compelling villains—they seek only to make themselves a nuisance, rather than anything deeper—but Garcia turns them into a necessary obstacle for the pumpkins to overcome, and she delivers a satisfying resolution. Young readers will enjoy seeing the bullies get their comeuppance and they’re likely to find the book visually appealing, as well.
An engaging and enjoyably illustrated tale of characters uniting to defeat an obnoxious opponent.Pub Date: March 4, 2025
ISBN: 9798891325272
Page Count: 46
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant.
Robot Roz undertakes an unusual ocean journey to save her adopted island home in this third series entry.
When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.
Hugely entertaining, timely, and triumphant. (author’s note) (Fiction. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9780316669412
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
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