Recent fans of Some Smug Slug (1996) may appreciate a different kind of animal alliteration in this book, whose pages are formed by a striking set of black-and-white photographs of kids and their animal allies. While not an alphabet, many letters are represented: ``Simon's slithery snake'' is seen wrapped about his neck, ``Rachel's rascally rat'' perches atop her hat, ``David's dotted dog'' rests sleepily beside its owner. Each portrait is a deliberate character study, up close and personal. Some are playful, others more contemplative in their composition, and likenesses between kids and their animal friends will not be overlooked. Aside from being a collection of posed, interesting photos, the book could be used in animal-naming sessions, or for wordplay that extends the alliteration. Cats, dogs, ponies, and goldfish are to be expected, but the book concludes with a bounce on Emma's enormous elephant, the largest animal of all. A collage of fun, spontaneous-looking outtakes fills the endpapers, and may prompt children to pick up their cameras and take a few shots themselves. (Picture book. 1-4)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1997
ISBN: 0-525-45792-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1997
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet if uneven expression of parents’ love for babies.
A love song to baby.
Rhyming verse expresses animal parents’ love for their little ones and is accompanied by cartoon-style illustrations of animal families rendered in bold colors and rounded forms. The succinct text pairs nicely with the spare art style, which offers uncluttered spreads focused on the parent-and-child interactions. “You’re everything FRESH, / the morning’s first dew,” reads one spread, for example, which is illustrated with a picture of a panda cub standing on top of its prone parent while reaching for a dewdrop falling from a branch. Behind them, a blue background is warmed by a huge, yellow semicircle representing the rising sun. Other animal families occupy other pages, so there’s no sequential storyline to speak of, but the text as a whole is framed by an opening spread depicting crocodile parents waiting for their (very large) egg to hatch, and hatch it does in the closing spread, which reads, “You’re every wish answered, / our hearts, how they grew… / every day countless, / everything you.” While the sentiment here is heartfelt, this use of “every day countless” is one example of several instances when word choices undermine clarity.
A sweet if uneven expression of parents’ love for babies. (Picture book. 1-3)Pub Date: Dec. 5, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-374-30141-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2017
An amusing and lively read that celebrates a venerable literary form.
A bear desperate to hibernate seeks refuge from neighbors.
A big brown bear is dressed in pajamas and ready to turn in for winter when suddenly: “KNOCK KNOCK.” “Who’s there?” asks the bear. “Justin the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by!” responds a fox bearing an arm full of firewood, and thus begins a series of knock-knock jokes that brings more and more woodland neighbors into the bear’s home. The bear grows increasingly frustrated as the illustrations grow ever more frantic, the compositions filled with animals bearing party supplies, food, and gifts. Eventually it is revealed that the bear’s neighbors are merely wishing their friend a safe and happy hibernation, and readers as well as the grouchy bear will find their hearts warming as a tiny chipmunk embraces its leg, proclaiming, “Al miss you all winter long.” Little readers will enjoy the narrative Sauer builds on these knock-knock jokes, and the repetition of the format will encourage them to create some of their own. The dynamic illustrations pop with color and noise, juxtaposing nicely with the bear in PJs who’s clearly desperate for some shut-eye. The end goal of sleep makes this a nice bedtime read-aloud, particularly for little readers who may be resisting the end of the day, even as the giant, red “KNOCK KNOCK”s encourage raucous storytime participation.
An amusing and lively read that celebrates a venerable literary form. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: July 31, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-338-11694-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2018
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