Everyone knows how difficult it is to get everything done at Christmastime because there are so many distractions. In this very human-like community of animals, Gilbert, a possum, is a good student who always does his homework, but the assignment to draw a picture of the main character from a favorite book is one that he honestly forgets because there were cookies to create and a tree to decorate. Plus he can’t stop daydreaming about the Red Racer Speed Sled he’s hoping to get from Santa. On Monday Gilbert is horrified when he realizes he will have to go to school empty-handed, so he tries the old “fake illness” routine, but is not able to fool his mom. As he’s walking to school he really does have a stomachache thinking about his teacher’s reaction. Gilbert comes up with a clever plan that temporarily satisfies the teacher, so she gives him one more day to finish the assignment correctly. When he gets home there is no procrastination and he immediately draws a picture of Saint Nick, who has the Red Racer Speed Sled in hand, from The Night Before Christmas. The next day the drawing gets a happy-face sticker and Gilbert gets a happy face too. DeGroat’s cute characters are colorfully appealing to young children and are realistic, in a furry sort of way. Details of everyday life (check out the cat clock in the kitchen) help to reinforce the connection between Gilbert’s world and the world of the reader. This latest will tickle those who have met Gilbert in Roses Are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink; Trick or Treat, Smell My Feet; and Happy Birthday to You, You Belong in a Zoo. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 31, 2000
ISBN: 0-688-17543-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2000
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
In a snowbound Swiss village, Matti figures it’s a good day to make a gingerbread man. He and his mother mix a batch of gingerbread and tuck it in the oven, but Matti is too impatient to wait ten minutes without peeking. When he opens the door, out pops a gingerbread baby, taunting the familiar refrain, “Catch me if you can.” The brash imp races all over the village, teasing animals and tweaking the noses of the citizenry, until there is a fair crowd on his heels intent on giving him a drubbing. Always he remains just out of reach as he races over the winterscape, beautifully rendered with elegant countryside and architectural details by Brett. All the while, Matti is busy back home, building a gingerbread house to entice the nervy cookie to safe harbor. It works, too, and Matti is able to spirit the gingerbread baby away from the mob. The mischief-maker may be a brat, but the gingerbread cookie is also the agent of good cheer, and Brett allows that spirit to run free on these pages. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-399-23444-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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