A lesser Larry adventure.
Larry’s at it again.
Curious pup Larry is back again, having been lost in some 30 locales ranging from Boston to San Diego. His owner, Pete, is visiting his grandmother’s farm when the local library’s bookmobile arrives for a house call. There aren’t any books for Larry, but that doesn’t stop the inquisitive doggo from climbing aboard and taking an unintentional trip to the public library. Squeezing in through the book drop, Larry explores the building unobserved while the bookmobile driver searches for the lost dog. Eventually Larry is located and reunited with his family to rest after his busy day. The abcb rhyme scheme and strict meter of the text create a singsong effect when read aloud: “But then, with a click, / and as quick as a bark, / poor Larry has found / he’s alone in the dark. / The truck engine rumbles. / That pup’s in a bind. / He’s on an adventure / with Pete far behind.” The retro cartoon illustrations support the text with bold colors, but their crisp aesthetic and the on-the-nose nostalgic tinges give a soulless feel to the book, and Larry’s dead-eyed stare does not convey any doggy warmth. The story does give a cursory look at public libraries and the services they offer, but it’s hardly alone in this endeavor. Pete and his grandmother present White, and the bookmobile driver presents Black; library staff and patrons are diverse.
A lesser Larry adventure. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-63217-324-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bigfoot/Sasquatch
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too many bugs, figuratively.
Lucy, “the youngest member of a family of fireflies,” must overcome an irrational, moon-induced anxiety in order to leave her family tree trunk and glow.
The first six pages pull readers into a lush, beautiful world of nighttime: “When the sun has set, silence falls over the Big Forest, and all of the nighttime animals wake up.” Mixed media provide an enchanting forest background, with stylized flora and fauna eventually illuminated by a large, benign moon, because the night “doesn’t like to catch them by surprise.” Turning the page catches readers by surprise, though: the family of fireflies is decidedly comical and silly-looking. Similarly, the text moves from a lulling, magical cadence to a distinct shift in mood as the bugs ready themselves for their foray into the night: “They wave their bottoms in the air, wiggle their feelers, take a deep, deep breath, and sing, ‘Here we go, it’s time to glow!’ ” It’s an acceptable change, but more unevenness follows. Lucy’s excitement about finally joining the other bugs turns to “sobbing” two nights in a row. Instead of directly linking her behavior to understandable reactions of children to newness, the text undermines itself by making Lucy’s parents’ sweet reassurances impotent and using the grandmother’s scientific explanation of moonlight as an unnecessary metaphor. Further detracting from the story, the text becomes ever denser and more complex over the book’s short span.
Too many bugs, figuratively. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Nov. 10, 2015
ISBN: 978-84-16147-00-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cuento de Luz
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2015
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