Featuring elements that emphasize comprehension skills, this fun tale is an ideal read-aloud choice.
A daddy longlegs tries on different colored shoes to prepare for a party in this illustrated children’s book.
Daddy is thrilled when he receives an invitation to a “Black tie” party and wonders what shoes he should wear. The orange and brown, blue-eyed spider heads to his closet to assess his options. He tries on various types of shoes, but none of them stay on his eight feet when he tries to dance. For example, his yellow shoes fall off during the Chicken Dance as he tries to “flap his front legs” because he does not have arms. Daddy says, “Well, that won’t do.” He tries on other footwear, including purple shoes for the Hokeypokey, pink shoes for ballet, and brown shoes for square dances. But none of them stay snug on his feet. Finally, Daddy tries tap-dancing in his black shoes. He “did a toe tap. Tap, tap, tap....He did a shuffle. Brush, tap, brush, tap.” The spider is delighted that his tap shoes stay on his feet and looks forward to attending the party. The following pages include repeated illustrations of Daddy wearing his different colored shoes. The text asks readers: “Do you remember what dance Daddy was doing while wearing these shoes?” The story also includes useful learning elements. Miller, an occupational therapist, integrates tools like color recognition, recollection skills, and “cueing” for young readers and adults. In addition, the book utilizes repetitive phrasing (“He put on all of his right shoes. One, two, three, four. Then he put on all of his left shoes. One, two, three, four”). The computerized, graphic, uncredited images are simple but purposeful. Readers will enjoy the sweet-looking protagonist’s thematic outfits; he dons a tutu for a ballet and a tuxedo for tap-dancing. Some scenes include related background details, like a vase of green clovers when Daddy practices the Irish jig. Backdrops and some key words (First, Second) correspond to the spider’s bright footwear.
Featuring elements that emphasize comprehension skills, this fun tale is an ideal read-aloud choice.Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4897-1924-9
Page Count: 60
Publisher: LifeRichPublishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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