This ode to exploration encourages youngsters to think big; sometimes the most fun is in the preparation.
Two young siblings go on an adventure in their own backyard.
In this Swedish import, two tiny tots decide one day to embark on a grand expedition. The children are never specifically gendered, with only one called by name—Iben (the other narrates). They gather the essentials: a tent, a flashlight, a cozy blanket, and a jump-rope (just in case they need a lasso, of course). They search the kitchen for treats but find none. Dad helpfully offers a jar of pickles, receiving frowns in response. They drag their supplies to a rock in the backyard and set up camp. Everything is great until they run out of pickles, mosquitoes start buzzing, Iben can’t get comfortable on the hard ground, and the narrator needs to “poop.” They shuffle back inside, confident in their decision. Dad (no other parent is mentioned throughout) doesn’t ask questions but instead snuggles up on the couch and breaks out the cheese puffs. Adbåge’s quirky line illustrations, with muted watercolor washes, set the tone for a grand—yet quite ordinary—adventure that many readers will find familiar. The children are drawn with pale skin and white, moplike pageboys.
This ode to exploration encourages youngsters to think big; sometimes the most fun is in the preparation. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-59270-245-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
An exuberant celebration of family.
A mixed-race child reflects on how much better Mom's and Dad’s lives are “now that I’m here.”
The irrepressible (“HA! HA! HA!”) narrator of this story—a dark-haired, pink-skinned, wide-eyed child—paints a vivid picture of daily life then and now. Readers will appreciate the stark contrasts drawn in two-page spreads (see: Mom and Dad sleeping peacefully with a rotund gray pug; now see: Mom, Dad, and dog fighting for space in a rumpled bed awash with toys, a gleeful child draped over them all). Meshon’s use of color, juxtaposing blues and greens for life then and reds and oranges for life now, further conveys the drastic changes wrought by the child. Bold, hand-lettered, capitalized text adds clarity and humor. It doesn’t always work: It may not be entirely clear to readers why Mom and Dad no longer buy lunch (but their bento boxes do look “way better”!), and some of the pre-child pages still feel a bit busy. The chaotic love and joy of this family shine through, though, and the depiction of the family’s blended culture is natural and seamless. Dad, with pale skin, light brown hair, and his croissant, espresso, and spaghetti, reads as white; Mom, with light skin, black hair, and her natto, matcha, and ramen, appears to be Japanese.
An exuberant celebration of family. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 24, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7352-2936-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2018
Occasional badness has never been so good.
Outlaw or lawman…the mustache will reveal the truth!
“When Baby Billy was born, his family noticed something odd: / He had a mustache.” When they ask the nurse what it could mean, she answers that they’ll have to wait to “see whether it turns out to be a good-guy mustache or a bad-guy mustache.” At first, Billy’s a cowboy, protecting his cattle (teddy bear) from attack (by the family dog) and caring for injured animals (his torn bear). Obviously a good-guy mustache! He becomes a “ringleader. A Spanish painter. A sword fighter. And finally… / A man of the law.” But as he grows into toddlerhood, his mustache begins to curl at the ends and becomes a bad-guy mustache! After some cat burglary, “cereal” crime and train robbery (including the track), he’s caught and thrown in jail (a barred crib). After ages, his mother busts him out, and his parents explain that everyone has “a bad-mustache day” every once in a while. Heos’ simple and silly metaphorical tale of the terrible twos will definitely entertain parents and children older than Billy. Twos will, at least, giggle over every page of the digitally created, jewel-eyed, cartoon illustrations, with their mix of Saturday-morning slapstick, dramatic comic-book angles and mustachioed babies.
Occasional badness has never been so good. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-77357-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 26, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2013
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