The famous name will garner attention, but stick with worthier books about self-improvement and self-affirmation.
Another celebrity makes her children’s-book debut.
Comedian DeGeneres, host of the popular, long-running, multi-Emmy-award–winning eponymous daytime talk show known for its star’s hip dance moves, audience giveaways, and A-list guests, delivers a picture book based on the animated series of the same name about her childhood in New Orleans. The author attempts to convey to children the importance of being oneself, describing what she likes about herself—for instance, her big heart—and, ostensibly, encouraging readers to follow suit: e.g., putting others’ needs ahead of their own, being generous and kind—all while no one notices. Certainly, these are great messages to convey to readers, but, as narrated here in clunky verse, the unclear text doesn’t quite hit its mark and comes across as rather egocentric; only occasionally do readers get a sense that Little Ellen is boosting them more than herself. The illustrations fare better than the narrative. Colorful, lively, though generic, the digital art features light-skinned, blond, wide-eyed 7-year-old Ellen frolicking with her light-skinned, gray-haired Gramsy and racially diverse friends against some picturesque French Quarter and Louisiana parkland landscapes. Some text is set in colored type, adding to the visual appeal. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
The famous name will garner attention, but stick with worthier books about self-improvement and self-affirmation. (Autobiographical picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 3, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-37860-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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