Young fans of action and dramatic upsets will enjoy this romp while possibly learning a bit of caution.
A skateboarding creature learns to practice a challenging skill by tackling the easy steps first.
“Buggy,” the cautious horsefly who befriended the cavalier main character in earlier books, watches, with two long-lashed, bulging eyes and downturned mouth, as Horse tries tricky skateboarding maneuvers and repeatedly falls and hurts himself. Each time, Buggy worriedly suggests a safety measure: a properly adjusted helmet, gloves, knee pads, etc. Horse accepts all suggestions, each time confidently claiming “I am REALLY ready” and “I will not get hurt” but always managing to fall next on an unprotected anatomical area. Then Horse gets a rope and wraps every part in whole-body padding. Alas, that doesn’t work, either: An especially twisty move undoes it all. Horse finally appropriates Buggy’s original sensible idea—learn easy tricks first, then try more difficult ones—before announcing a final idea: “TO THE POOL!” Buggy is extra alarmed until, on the final page, we see Horse not skating in an empty concrete basin but soaking a very bruised body in blue water. The words are manageable; tension is maintained without too much predictability; pratfalls produce laughs. The illustrations are cartoon-style against orange and mustard-yellow fields, with lots of crashes (“bonk,” “whoop,” “wham”) emphasized by exaggerated facial expressions registering Horse’s excitement, pain, and frustration.
Young fans of action and dramatic upsets will enjoy this romp while possibly learning a bit of caution. (Easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780823454839
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2023
A charming tale of an athlete who may not steal any bases but who will certainly steal readers’ hearts.
Ohtani, pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers, teams up with Blank and Liem to tell the story of how his dog, Decoy, threw out a ceremonial first pitch.
It’s a big day! Decoy leaps “off the bed. Then back onto the bed. Then off the bed.” The enthusiastic pup heads outside to practice with his lucky baseball but is quickly distracted by squirrels (“we’ll play later!”), airplanes (“flyin’ high!”), and flowers (“smell ya soon!”). Dog and pitcher then head to the ballpark. In the locker room, Decoy high-paws Shohei’s teammates. It’s nearly time! But as Shohei prepares to warm up, Decoy realizes that he’s forgotten something important: his lucky ball. Without it, there will be “no championships, no parades, and no hot dogs!” Back home he goes, returning just in time. With Shohei at the plate, Decoy runs from the mound to his owner, rolling the ball into Shohei’s mitt for a “Striiiiike!” Related from a dog’s point of view, Ohtani and Blank’s energetic text lends the tale a sense of urgency and suspense. Liem’s illustrations capture the excitement of the first day of baseball season and the joys of locker room camaraderie, as well as Shohei and Decoy’s mutual affection—even when the ball is drenched in slobber, Shohei’s love for his pet shines through, and clearly, Decoy is focused when it matters.
A charming tale of an athlete who may not steal any bases but who will certainly steal readers’ hearts. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Feb. 3, 2026
ISBN: 9780063460775
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
An early reader that kids will want to befriend.
In an odd-couple pairing of Bear and Chipmunk, only one friend is truly happy to spend the day at the beach.
“Not me!” is poor Chipmunk’s lament each time Bear expresses the pleasure he takes in sunning, swimming, and other activities at the beach. While controlled, repetitive text makes the story accessible to new readers, slapstick humor characterizes the busy watercolor-and-ink illustrations and adds interest. Poor Chipmunk is pinched by a crab, buried in sand, and swept upside down into the water, to name just a few mishaps. Although other animal beachgoers seem to notice Chipmunk’s distress, Bear cheerily goes about his day and seems blithely ignorant of his friend’s misfortunes. The playful tone of the illustrations helps soften the dynamic so that it doesn’t seem as though Chipmunk is in grave danger or that Bear is cruel. As they leave at the end of the book Bear finally asks, “Why did you come?” and Chipmunk’s sweet response caps off the day with a warm sunset in the background.
An early reader that kids will want to befriend. (Early reader. 5-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3546-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
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