Echoing the plaint of many an older sibling, a young versifier—cast as a member of an affectionate family of tiger-striped cats in often rumpled human dress—wonders, “Where did that baby come from? / And can we take it back?” The first query sparks an extended riff: Did the child fall from the sky? Sprout from a seed? Come from a kit? (“All it can do is pee and poo / Is there a missing bit?”) A zoo? A grocery store? Outer space? Depicting each alternative in cozily jumbled, hilarious close-ups, Gliori has the kitten floating amid wind-swept leaves, for instance, budding with irresistible cuteness on a vine, or sitting on a shelf next to a sign offering “free-range babies.” After smiles give way to tears and then, with a bit of cuddling, smiles again, harmony reigns: “I think our baby comes from the place I come from, too. / Our place of birth was planet Earth—this baby, me . . . and you.” Animated by themes of love and acceptance, this makes a perfect lead-in to Robie Harris’s more specific answer in Happy Birth Day (1996). (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-15-205373-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2005
The story of how winter transforms a lonely scarecrow into a benevolent snowman, enabling him to befriend all the creatures he’s supposed to frighten away. In Kneen’s realistic illustrations, this scarecrow is just as frightening as his species dictates, sending fear into the hearts of small rodents, birds, and butterflies with his jagged teeth and flapping arms. For the entire summer he stands alone in his field watching the birds and animals raise their young; in the fall, some of the creatures head off to hibernate, making him feel even more alone. Then it snows, and under the thick white blanket of flakes the scarecrow has a friendlier demeanor. No longer afraid, the animals climb all over him, and now the scarecrow has one last worry—that when the snow melts, so will his new friendships. The illustrations are detailed, with embossed details that give this book the look of a fattened greeting card; most children will be cheered by the scarecrow’s good fortune, and will not be able to predict its advent. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-525-46080-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
Seymour and Keach (Yum!, not reviewed, 1998) join forces for another This One ‘N That One escapade, continuing the capers of two frisky kittens based on their own twins. The tired theme of jumping on the bed is at its most predictable here. When the two frisky, literal-minded twin kittens are told by Big Jim and Lady Jane not to jump on chairs, they jump on the sofa. When told not to jump on the sofa, they jump on the bed, and so forth. Soon Lady Jane is missing, and found jumping on her own bed with the “naughtiest kits in Catafornia,” in a plot device so standard it’s now become expected. Big Jim can’t beat ‘em, so he joins ‘em, and subsequently breaks the bed. The story is little more than a snapshot from a family album, and even pictures of the wide-eyed cats in bright pajamas can’t save it; readers wanting more boing for their buck will have to look elsewhere. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-399-23440-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1999
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