An appealing, preschool-friendly introduction to perseverance, selflessness, and the changing of the seasons.
In this debut picture book, a squirrel must protect a budding leaf from winter.
Twitch is a squirrel in charge of safeguarding a small green leaf bud until his friends return from their winter migration. He names the plant Little Bud and prepares for the approach of winter by gathering twigs and eating as many acorns as possible while keeping an eye on his new friend. Winter sets in not long afterward and Twitch struggles to manage both his and Little Bud’s needs: “Many days and nights, darkness overcame the forest only to be awakened by snowflakes. Twitch thought, Little Bud will never be a green leaf with snowflakes around.” Together, they brave the weather and do their best to emerge into the warm spring and the welcomes of their woodland friends. Haun’s well-paced but brief story is a sweet introduction to both social-emotional values and ecology, the latter through its inclusion of fun facts about buds in the aftermatter. The tale could take place in anyone’s backyard, providing readers with a relatable entry point to the story. Twitch’s constant concern for Little Bud is touching and could become a gateway for children to learning about responsibility by growing a plant at home. The author brings her signature artistic style to the tale, with illustrations based in collage, using materials that add visual texture to the narrative, such as the plaid fabric patterns in the tree leaves.
An appealing, preschool-friendly introduction to perseverance, selflessness, and the changing of the seasons.Pub Date: April 4, 2024
ISBN: 9798988922308
Page Count: 32
Publisher: just winging it books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 16, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note.
Little Honey Bunny Funnybunny loves baseball almost as much as she loves her big brother P.J.—though it’s a close-run thing.
Readers familiar with the pranks P.J. plays on his younger sibling in older episodes of the series (most illustrated by Roger Bollen) will be amused—and perhaps a little confused—to see him in the role of perfect big brother after meeting his swaddled little sister for the first time in mama’s lap. But here, along with being a constant companion and “always happy to see her,” he cements his heroic status in her eyes by hitting a home run for his baseball team and then patiently teaching her how to play T-ball. After carefully coaching her and leading her through warm-up exercises, he even sits in the stands, loudly cheering her on as she scores the winning run in her own very first game. “‘You are the best brother a bunny could ever have!’” she burbles. This tale’s a tad blander compared with others centered on P.J. and his sister, but it’s undeniably cheery, with text well structured for burgeoning readers. The all-smiles animal cast in Bowers’ cartoon art features a large and diversely hued family of bunnies sporting immense floppy ears as well as a multispecies crowd of furry onlookers equally varied of color, with one spectator in a wheelchair.
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note. (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 6, 2026
ISBN: 9798217032464
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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