A playfully sweet and amusing collection that’s an excellent choice for reading aloud.
This illustrated children’s book includes fables, fairy tales, and other short stories.
In the 22 stories collected here, characters can be young or older, and the plots can be fairly realistic or fanciful. The volume features both animal and human characters in a variety of settings: a garden, under the sea, the present day, and a fairy-tale past. While most are original, some employ familiar elements from children’s literature or fables, such as a naughty, carrot-stealing rabbit or, in “The goat who didn’t have any milk to feed her kid,” a narrative reminiscent of “The Little Red Hen.” In these cases, though, the tales provide fresh takes, as in “The true story of the ant and the cicada.” A lazy insect idles the summer away, but instead of leaving him to starve, the ant king invites him to exchange shelter for entertainment. Several tales feature the classic motif of being rewarded for kindness to animals, as in “Once upon a time, a bear went to the circus,” in which a little girl frees a captive circus bear who later gives salmon to her picnicking family. Kalyvas, writing his second children’s book, has a good ear for dialogue and appealing repetition, even supplying read-aloud suggestions for one story: “Tickle-tickle-tickle, he tickled its nose with her whiskers (author’s note to parents: tickle your child’s nose at the same time).” The tales emphasize altruism, compassion, and a spirit of fun, always concluding: “And they lived happily ever after!” Illustrating her second children’s book, Gottardo supplies digital pictures that capture the tales’ humor. Apart from a Bedouin family, all the human characters appear to be White.
A playfully sweet and amusing collection that’s an excellent choice for reading aloud.Pub Date: June 11, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 117
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
A charming blend of whimsy and medieval heroism highlighting the triumph of brains over brawn.
A young owl achieves his grand ambition.
Owl, an adorably earnest and gallant little owlet, dreams of being a knight. He imagines himself defeating dragons and winning favor far and wide through his brave exploits. When a record number of knights go missing, Owl applies to Knight School and is surprisingly accepted. He is much smaller than the other knights-in-training, struggles to wield weapons, and has “a habit of nodding off during the day.” Nevertheless, he graduates and is assigned to the Knight Night Watch. While patrolling the castle walls one night, a hungry dragon shows up and Owl must use his wits to avoid meeting a terrible end. The result is both humorous and heartwarming, offering an affirmation of courage and clear thinking no matter one’s size…and demonstrating the power of a midnight snack. The story never directly addresses the question of the missing knights, but it is hinted that they became the dragon’s fodder, leaving readers to question Owl’s decision to befriend the beast. Humor is supplied by the characters’ facial expressions and accented by the fact that Owl is the only animal in his order of big, burly human knights. Denise’s accomplished digital illustrations—many of which are full bleeds—often use a warm sepia palette that evokes a feeling of antiquity, and some spreads feature a pleasing play of chiaroscuro that creates suspense and drama.
A charming blend of whimsy and medieval heroism highlighting the triumph of brains over brawn. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 15, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-31062-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2022
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