Potty humor—not instruction—with goofs and gaffes galore.
Privy privations lead a desperate cowhand on a wild goose chase.
A cowgirl finds herself in quite a pickle when she feels the urge to take care of some necessary business. Trouble is, all the critters she encounters give her bad advice. A hound dog suggests she go in a grassy pasture, but a horse dispels that myth right quick (“This is where a pony goes potty!”). The horse suggests a canyon, but the coyotes rebuff her intentions, saying that’s their potty place. On and on it goes, each animal suggesting a location only to have another lay claim to the spot. The poor cowgirl is fit to burst when at long last she spies the rancher’s well-appointed indoor toilet. The animals are aghast, but clearly that is the right place to go. While some potty trainees may enjoy the malarkey, this book is clearly aimed at the older set, for whom toilet misadventures are the height of humor. Alas, the book lacks a satisfying ending, choosing to merely finish with a “Thank you” Post-it left in the cowgirl’s wake. Souva’s art gets the job done and somehow avoids any actual depiction of excrement or urine along the way. The cowgirl presents white.
Potty humor—not instruction—with goofs and gaffes galore. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5132-6238-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: West Margin Press
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
An infectious seasonal read-aloud.
The cow’s cold turns her moo into a boo, scaring all of the farm animals—and even, thankfully, a would-be predator.
With the repeated refrain “the cow said, ‘Boo!’ ” Button’s story lends itself perfectly to a preschool group read-aloud. When the ill (and therefore clumsy) cow stumbles into a clothesline and becomes enveloped in a ghostly sheet, she unintentionally shocks her fellow farm animals. Seeing her friends’ terrified reactions to her greetings, the still-enshrouded cow sadly goes off by herself. But when she notices a fox creeping toward her friends, she uses her new scariness to save the farm. Button’s rhyming text hits at just the right pace, encouraging participation from little readers. Kids will love being in on the joke that the cow isn’t really a ghost, and the silliness of the animal sounds when they all catch the cow’s cold will certainly elicit many a giggle. Carter’s illustrations include subtle hints at fall and Halloween even though the text doesn’t explicitly mention the season: Pumpkins dot the field, there’s a jack-o’-lantern shirt on the clothesline, and leaves float across the pages. The real visual highlight, however, is the progression of frames showing the fox sneaking through the field of snoozing animals. The glow of the moonlight acts as a spotlight on the fox, drawing readers’ attention to the action the animals don’t notice. The rear endpapers present five illustrated steps to “wash your hooves and paws!” and keep colds away.
An infectious seasonal read-aloud. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77278-216-5
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Pajama Press
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2021
A soothing tale of a tree that helps transform a community.
Dani forms a bond with the sole tree that is planted in their urban neighborhood.
“In front of Dani’s building was a hole. Sometimes dusty, sometimes puddly. And sometimes wild with bits of green.” A double-page spread, mostly in muted pastels, shows a foliage-free urban setting of adjoined buildings. But soon a truck pulls up, and two people plant a tree in that hole. For brown-skinned Dani, the tree is a source of joy—when birds arrive, the child is woken by their beautiful songs instead of truck noises. The tree helps predict the weather, protects Dani from “noise and grime,” and even offers friendship as the protagonist confides in it. Quiet, lyrical text describes the ways that typical urban sights and sounds change with the arrival of the tree; this is a good introduction to the concept of greening city streets for the youngest children. The text pointedly makes this tree more “special” to Dani than the more “magnificent” trees in the park. Depicting small details of lives lived inside and outside the apartments, the vibrant illustrations invite lengthy examination. The ending double-page spreads are a delightful combination of metaphors and vivid art as each season the tree continues to make the neighborhood a joyful place to live. Tranquil and calming, this is an ideal bedtime read. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A soothing tale of a tree that helps transform a community. (information on street trees, resources) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 4, 2023
ISBN: 9780358423416
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
