A sunny, woodsy debut that highlights the importance of speaking up for oneself.
An enterprising young bunny stands up to an unfairly demanding teacher in Pooler’s picture book.
The fledglings of Acorn Hollow love the freedom of summertime, when they can play outside and go swimming whenever they like. But when the new school year starts, these young ones can’t help but feel nervous because of the reputation of their new teacher, Miss Nittypicky: “‘Now children,’ she demanded on the first day, ‘this year you will have no recess and heaps of burrowwork!’” She isn’t kidding, either; bunny Fleur and her friends are always tired from their constant academic labors and lack of rest. Even the Sun is sad without his outdoor animal friends, and he cries huge tears that cause a downpour in Acorn Hollow. Fleur tells her mother about the problem and organizes a town meeting, after which several families go to Miss Nittypicky to ask her to change her strict ways. Pooler’s debut picture book is a sweet and simple foray into a cozy fantasy academic world that encourages readers to stand up for their rights. While it’s unclear why a meeting with the entire town was necessary to convince Miss Nittypicky to quit her persnickety ways, the story’s core message—that children need a certain amount of freedom to thrive—is loud and clear. McKie’s illustrations bring Fleur’s world to life with a balance of warm and cool tones that convey both optimism and gloom as the school days get more difficult.
A sunny, woodsy debut that highlights the importance of speaking up for oneself.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Sept. 22, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
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A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
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