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ROBIN ROBIN

Name: ROBIN ROBIN
Author: Dan Ojari
ISBN: 978-1-63655-009-1

by Dan Ojari & Mikey Please ; illustrated by Briony May Smith ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 2, 2021

This story makes a wonderful defense of chaos without being the least bit chaotic.

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Any character in this picture book could be the main character in a different book.

Robin often speaks in rhyme: “Leave no trace, go tiptoe pace.” The mice who adopted her when her egg fell out of a nest speak mostly in short sentences, mostly about food, with exclamation points at the end: “Breadcrumbs!” “Pie crumbs!” “Cookie crumbs!” The book as a whole is technically a holiday story, but it’s the least Christmassy of Christmas books. The tree is mostly an excuse for Magpie to collect shiny objects, like the “Chrim-Cross Star” on top. All the different writing styles could make the book feel disjointed, but instead it becomes a statement of identity: “ ‘Hey, over here, look at me!’ [Robin chirps], flapping and singing as loudly as a BIRD.” Smith has made Robin a different color than every other character in the book, and it gives her an excuse to try out a rich and layered tint of red. If Rembrandt and Edward Sorel worked together on a picture book, it would look like this. (The book is based on a musical special from Aardman Animations, which, appropriately enough, is animated in a slightly different style, à la Wallace & Gromit.) By the end, Magpie gets a star, and the mice get three different kinds of crumbs.

This story makes a wonderful defense of chaos without being the least bit chaotic. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-63655-009-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Red Comet Press

Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
IS THIS A PLUM?
by Dan Ojari & Finn Ojari ; illustrated by Dan Ojari & Finn Ojari

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THE PUMPKIN THIEF

From the Leaf Thief series

by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 28, 2026

More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.

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Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.

Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.

More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: July 28, 2026

ISBN: 9781464268076

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SUN THIEF
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SNOW THIEF
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BISON AND THE BUTTERFLY
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nancy Leschnikoff

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HOW TO CATCH A MONSTER

From the How To Catch… series

by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2017

Only for dedicated fans of the series.

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When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.

“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.

Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)