An adaptation of an Indonesian folk tale with dreamlike storytelling and ripe animation that grows on you.
A childless couple wishes desperately for a child and is granted this wish by a horrifying ogre, who gives them a cucumber seed to plant. The catch? On her eighth birthday, the child must be turned back over to the monster. Unperturbed by this bum adoption plan, the couple plants the seed, and the beautiful, kind daughter it produces is named Timun Mas, or "Golden Cucumber." The ogre, of course, does return, but a wise man has given the family four items (including needles and shrimp paste) to help the girl fight him off. What follows is a chase sequence in which Timun Mas doesn't outwit or outfight her attempted captor, but instead drops the items behind her as she runs until the ogre is overcome, thus combining the tale’s obvious Rapunzel motifs with Baba Yaga ones. While the story doesn't exactly hold together and the text is flat ("Realizing that he had been fooled, the Ogre became angry"), the production is gorgeous. Clean, subtly colored and animated pages breathe more than enough life into the old story. It also doesn't hurt that navigation is nearly perfect, the narration is excellent, and the Ogre is rendered scarily enough to make for a tense pursuit. Not all of the story makes sense or is told in a convincing way, but the package so skillfully balances whimsy with danger that it stays with readers. (iPad storybook app. 3-8)
Pub Date: July 31, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: LooLooChoo
Review Posted Online: Sept. 25, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2012
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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