The mystery box that young Samuel pulls behind him draws a growing queue of curious creatures in its wake. What’s inside?
The blond, doll-like white urchin in floppy pants and a ribboned cap might not have a clue, but there are visual hints in every picture—as Dawnay rather unfairly waits until near the end to announce. Meanwhile, though, a speculative flock of pigeons, a fox, and other animals fall in behind Samuel, and the suspense heightens thanks to a deft and rhythmic narrative: “A pigeon spies it from a tree, / ‘Hey, what’s in there? Do let me see!’ / The paper package bumps and shakes, / The pigeon cries, ‘Could it be…cakes…?’ ” Samuel trundles the carton past a row of shops, into a park, and finally up to his birthday picnic. There, ta-da!—its contents are revealed at last to be the wooden toy pooch he had unflappably wheeled through a previous appearance in A Possum’s Tail (2014). Barrow’s informally drawn illustrations add considerable charm and subtext to the trek, as Samuel passes mixed-race and same-sex couples at cafe tables, a news vendor in a turban, and shopkeepers and pedestrians of diverse skin color…all clad in antique, mid-20th-century styles.
Young audiences will be drawn along, eager to chime in with their own guesses. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 31, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-84976-642-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tate/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way.
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All the typical worries and excuses kids have about school are filtered through Willems’ hysterical, bus-loving Pigeon.
Told mostly in speech balloons, the bird’s monologue will have kids (and their caregivers) in stitches at Pigeon’s excuses. From already knowing everything (except whatever question readers choose to provide in response to “Go ahead—ask me a question. / Any question!”) to fearing learning too much (“My head might pop off”), Pigeon’s imagination has run wild. Readers familiar with Pigeon will recognize the muted, matte backgrounds that show off the bird’s shenanigans so well. As in previous outings, Willems varies the size of the pigeon on the page to help communicate emotion, the bird teeny small on the double-page spread that illustrates the confession that “I’m… / scared.” And Pigeon’s eight-box rant about all the perils of school (“The unknown stresses me out, dude”) is marvelously followed by the realization (complete with lightbulb thought bubble) that school is the place for students to practice, with experts, all those skills they don’t yet have. But it is the ending that is so Willems, so Pigeon, and so perfect. Pigeon’s last question is “Well, HOW am I supposed to get there, anyway!?!” Readers will readily guess both the answer and Pigeon’s reaction.
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-04645-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION
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