Neither plot nor visuals inspire a second read.
Peddles is a pig who dreams of dancing.
He imagines a number of other activities first: flying, leapfrogging, being an astronaut. One night, he follows the “whooping and hollering” he hears to a hoedown in the barn, where he is transfixed by the footwear. After clomping around in soup cans, flowerpots, and (ridiculously) beehives, he comes across the object of his affection: bright red cowboy boots. The problem is, he can’t balance on two feet. Luckily, his fellow swine come to the rescue, raising the fallen protagonist with a group nudge. Stanton’s picture-book debut, Henny (2014), concerned the musings of a chicken born with human arms. This author seems to be working her way through farm animals and messages. The first title champions accepting differences; this one continues that theme as it heralds lending support to friends. Children will be amused at the scatological scenes and some of the caricatures. The watercolor-and-pencil compositions, however, are somewhat repetitious; it is not always possible to tell which pig is Peddles, and his cohorts do not have any distinguishing characteristics or behaviors. The muted palette against the abundant white backgrounds and the action are so subdued (until the boots appear) that children may lose interest.
Neither plot nor visuals inspire a second read. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-1691-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 15, 2015
Overworn coattails.
Writing a fictionalized version of himself, naturalist Wohlleben gives lessons to orphaned talking squirrel Piet as they search for tree families in this stripped-down storybook version of The Hidden Life of Trees (2016).
Both Peter and Piet have cartoonlike faces with round, black eyes, and the scenery—bright with earth tones and generic foliage—also resembles bland commercial animation. While Peter presents as a ruddy-faced white man sporting a gray beard, the only other named human—Dana—is a woman of color, dressed in overalls and engaged in sustainable forestry. Kudos for this. Otherwise, the text tries too hard to intersperse interesting facts about trees and squirrels—some rudimentary, others relatively obscure—into a simplistic plot: Lonely squirrel seeks family; takes walk with Peter; still feels lonely; gains Peter as family. Among other things, young readers learn that trees often need the protection of older, taller trees to grow up properly; that heavy equipment compacts earth too hard for seeds to get started; that hawks prey on squirrels; that squirrels help start beech seedlings; that some trees release an orange-smelling distress signal. Oddly, Peter gives no credit to people planting saplings in the wake of deforestation, since these unprotected trees will “have a hard life” without families. Can You Hear the Trees Talking? (2019) superbly adapted Wohlleben’s bestseller for middle graders; this patronizing attempt to bring it to a still younger audience fails.
Overworn coattails. (foreword, endnotes) (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77164-457-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greystone Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
In this sweet story, scary things may remain scary, but pushing past them yields enormous rewards.
Doerrfeld expands her repertoire of stories featuring social and emotional learning with a tale of baby turtles and enormous waves.
After Nellie hatches alongside her many siblings, she’s overwhelmed to see how far they’ll have to travel to reach the ocean. Once they make it, the others dive happily into the surf, but Nellie takes one look at the pounding, terrifying waves and heads in the other direction. Each time Nellie thinks she has the situation under control (she tries to hide, run away, and rely on someone bigger and stronger), something comes along to change her mind. Scaling the nearby cliffs, she finds herself alone and lonely, but from her high vantage point, she realizes that the waves may be daunting, but there’s more to the ocean than she initially thought; in fact, it’s beautiful. Few young readers will blame Nellie for wanting to escape, and whether or not they pick up on the obvious messaging is less important than Nellie’s own personal journey. Her attempts to avoid her troubles carry hints of beloved titles such as Ashley Spires’ The Most Magnificent Thing (2014). The adorable, thick-lined digital art featuring a beguilingly expressive, large-headed, big-eyed, tiny turtle makes adept use of perspective, driving home the lesson.
In this sweet story, scary things may remain scary, but pushing past them yields enormous rewards. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780593856291
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2025
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