Pattison’s picture book offers a unique spin on an old classic.
Goldilocks is famous in town for her golden hair. She enters a cave where a troll family lives, sees food on their table, and commences tasting. She decides the smallest dish is too “jitter-bitter,” the middle-sized one is a too “treat-sweet,” but the biggest dish is a “just right-delight.” She also sits in and breaks (!) one of their chairs. Neighbors peek through the window, watching Goldilocks, who eventually takes a “snap-nap” in the trolls’ beds. The police are called. Papa Troll tells the cop, who’s a pink bear, “This is the third time I’ve found Goldilocks in my cave this bleak-week!” The cop awakens Goldilocks and tells her she is a thief. She retorts, “You can’t do anything to me!” The story concludes with Goldilocks in the clink and a reminder to stay out of “rubble-trouble.” Pattison’s use of silly language adds an amusing layer to the story, making this a good pick for a read-aloud. Bartolomé’s colorful, simple illustrations offer drawn interpretations and unique textured backgrounds; for example, the last page depicts Goldilocks in “folktale-jail,” laughing and swapping stories with the Big Bad Wolf.
A funny, creative take on a well-known fairy tale.Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-62944-162-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Mims House, LLC
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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With a little help from his audience, a young storyteller gets over a solid case of writer’s block in this engaging debut.
Despite the (sometimes creatively spelled) examples produced by all his classmates and the teacher’s assertion that “Stories are everywhere!” Ralph can’t get past putting his name at the top of his paper. One day, lying under the desk in despair, he remembers finding an inchworm in the park. That’s all he has, though, until his classmates’ questions—“Did it feel squishy?” “Did your mom let you keep it?” “Did you name it?”—open the floodgates for a rousing yarn featuring an interloping toddler, a broad comic turn and a dramatic rescue. Hanlon illustrates the episode with childlike scenes done in transparent colors, featuring friendly-looking children with big smiles and widely spaced button eyes. The narrative text is printed in standard type, but the children’s dialogue is rendered in hand-lettered printing within speech balloons. The episode is enhanced with a page of elementary writing tips and the tantalizing titles of his many subsequent stories (“When I Ate Too Much Spaghetti,” “The Scariest Hamster,” “When the Librarian Yelled Really Loud at Me,” etc.) on the back endpapers.
An engaging mix of gentle behavior modeling and inventive story ideas that may well provide just the push needed to get some budding young writers off and running. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2012
ISBN: 978-0761461807
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Amazon Children's Publishing
Review Posted Online: Aug. 22, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2012
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A young boy sees things a little differently than others.
Noah can see patterns in the dust when it sparkles in the sunlight. And if he puts his nose to the ground, he can smell the “green tang of the ants in the grass.” His most favorite thing of all, however, is to read. Noah has endless curiosity about how and why things work. Books open the door to those answers. But there is one question the books do not explain. When the wind comes whistling by, where does it go? Noah decides to find out. In a chase that has a slight element of danger—wind, after all, is unpredictable—Noah runs down streets, across bridges, near a highway, until the wind lifts him off his feet. Cowman’s gusty wisps show each stream of air turning a different jewel tone, swirling all around. The ribbons gently bring Noah home, setting him down under the same thinking tree where he began. Did it really happen? Worthington’s sensitive exploration leaves readers with their own set of questions and perhaps gratitude for all types of perspective. An author’s note mentions children on the autism spectrum but widens to include all who feel a little different.
An invitation to wonder, imagine and look at everything (humans included) in a new way. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-60554-356-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Redleaf Lane
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2015
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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