Ultimately, this lacks the solid and seamless math practice of the first; it’s just some math annoyingly mixed with a few...
The first, fabulous vaudevillian math escapades of the Wing Wing Brothers (The Wing Wing Brothers Math Spectacular, 2012) give way to this lackluster second adventure at a carnival, with the action divided into three amusements.
Focusing on counting to 100 by 10s, the first amusement finds the five brothers competing to ring the bell at the top of a strength tower. While each brother does better than the last, the fifth one providing the slapstick they are known for, and each scores a multiple of 10, there is no counting here. The second amusement at least involves math: Each brother has a tray of 10, 20 or 30 wieners, which readers count as they come to the table, then subtract as the brothers gorge themselves sick. The last episode puts the brothers on the Wedgie Wheel. Readers add and subtract by 10s and 20s as the ride stops at each car, loading and unloading passengers. Prominent mathematical equations in a large red typeface help readers with the math in the last two amusements, though since the answers are included, they don’t really have to think at all. Long’s pencil-and-digital illustrations are still comical, but the slapstick just isn’t as funny this time around.
Ultimately, this lacks the solid and seamless math practice of the first; it’s just some math annoyingly mixed with a few kinda-funny jokes. (Math picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2604-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: March 5, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2013
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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