It’s easy to see how Pilkey’s high-action, easy-reading chapter novel with a comic-book feel would appeal to younger readers. The black-and-white stylish pictures by Ontiveros are way cool and the text is insouciant and funny. This is the third book that pairs the tiny bespectacled mouse, Ricky, with his super-strong, giant robot buddy, a sharp-jawed fellow who looks like an out-of-shape wrestler with rodent ears. Because Ricky is being punished for acting irresponsibly—he and his robot have come home late for dinner again—they are the only ones on the Planet Earth who miss the television show Rocky Rodent. And it’s a good thing too, because that very night a group of Voodoo Vultures from the Planet Venus, tired of eating the melted mess that passes for food on their super hot planet, beam down rays through the television, hypnotizing Earth’s entire population, except for Ricky, into obeying their wishes. When they arrive on Earth, the ravenous vultures order the hypnotized mice to bring them good Earth cooking, in a funny throwaway touch demanding “more chocolate chip cookies” but “no more rice cakes,” until Ricky is able to figure out how to save the day. Parents will be happy to know this tale does have a moral, “responsibility . . . is doing the right thing at the right time,” though giggling fans may miss it. Also containing a rather lame flip-o-rama and instructions on how to draw the characters, this book is silly good fun. (Fiction. 7-10)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-439-23624-X
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Blue Sky/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2000
In this Easy-to-Read entry is a dog large enough to chase Clifford the big red dog right out of town. Tiny is a dog who is the exact opposite of what his name implies. When he gets dirty, his owner—a small boy—has to search to find a receptacle big enough to scrub him down. A pail, the sink, and even the bathtub are dwarfed by the presence of this giant hound; only the little boy’s wading pool will do. The child gets Tiny washed, only to be dirtied himself when his pooch discovers a new mud puddle to play in. Both boy and dog come clean in the end. Davis’s playful illustrations romp alongside the beginning reader text, using an easy, loping giganticism to portray this big pet’s appeal. (Picture book. 5-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-670-87962-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The cuddly, inquisitive cub Alfie (When Will It Be Spring?, 1998) returns, this time on a quest to find his “missing” baby sibling. Chafing at the seemingly interminable wait for the arrival of the new baby, Alfie becomes convinced that he or she must have gotten lost on the journey home. The eager bear cub explores the woods searching for the baby. Walters’s realistically rendered illustrations show Alfie on a merry chase as he mistakes one wild creature—a beaver swimming, a baby bison hiding, and a lounging mountain lion—after another for the baby bear. When Alfie’s father discovers his discouraged cub, he takes him to the one place Alfie didn’t search—home, where a new brother and sister are waiting. The lush nature scenes, populated by an array of lovable woodland animals, fill the pages, but this is a very human story, tempering this glimpse of a toddler’s single- minded perspective with compassion and gentle humor. (Picture book. 3-7)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-525-46161-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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