No secret here: This ship doesn’t sail.
A young seafarer receives underwater help.
Clementine, a princess-turned-captain with years of training at the Royal Barnacle Academy under her belt, sets sail aboard her magical ship, the Star of the Sea; her crew comprises various animals. Clementine wears a necklace, a “starstone” that represents stars’ importance in her career and as navigational aids. She’s distraught when a gull steals it. When the bird later drops it, it sinks to the ocean’s bottom, where it’s found by three mer-kids; their wise GrandMer explains its significance to the ship—now sitting listlessly in the waves above—and to the rightful owner. Flo, the eldest mer-sister, invents an ingenious device to return the bauble. Meanwhile, the hapless vessel has magically provided Clementine with a secret map to guide her to her treasure. Together, these forces bring about a happy ending. Unhappily, this isn’t a credible, well-plotted, or well-written story. Its amateurish prose includes trite, cloying expressions such as “my stars” and “Oh my dearie-dear.” Additionally, it’s sometimes unclear from the illustrations who’s being referenced when some crew members are named in the text; a final page identifying Clementine’s “worthy crew” helps. Commendably, this tale is female-centric; even the ship is female and sentient. The colorful, cartoonish illustrations are lively. Clementine, with brown, wavy hair, brown skin, and large, green eyes, seems to be a child; Flo is light-skinned. Human and mermaid characters are diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
No secret here: This ship doesn’t sail. (captain’s log, “are mermaids real?”) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2023
ISBN: 9781646388288
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Cottage Door Press
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
As Captain Awesome would say, this kid is “MI-TEE!” (Fiction. 5-8)
The town of Sunnyview got a little bit safer when 8-year-old Eugene McGillicudy moved in.
Just like his comic-book mentor, Super Dude, Eugene, aka Captain Awesome, is on a one-man mission is to save the world from supervillains, like the nefarious “Queen Stinkypants from Planet Baby.” Just as Eugene suspected, plenty of new supervillains await him at Sunnyview Elementary. Are Meredith Mooney and the mind-reading Ms. Beasley secretly working together to try and force Eugene to reveal his secret identity? Will Principal Brick Foot succeed in throwing Captain Awesome into the “Dungeon of Detention?” Fortunately, Eugene isn’t forced to go it alone. Charlie Thomas Jones, fellow comic-book lover and Super Dude fan, stands ready and willing to help. When the class hamster goes missing, Captain Awesome must don his cape and, with the help of his new best friend, ride to the rescue. Kirby’s funny and engaging third-person narration and O’Connor’s hilarious illustrations make the book easily accessible and enormously appealing, particularly to readers who have recently graduated to chapter books. But it is the quirky, mischievous Eugene that really makes this book special. His energy and humor are contagious, and his dogged commitment to his superhero alter ego is enough to make anyone a believer.
As Captain Awesome would say, this kid is “MI-TEE!” (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: April 3, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-4090-6
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
A cheery story that “wool” likely evoke some smiles.
A “baa”-nd of pirates gets the wool pulled over their eyes.
After a treasure-hunting foray, Captain Hoof and his crew of fleecy sheep are homeward bound with a glittery bounty—the lost Golden Shears, which once belonged to the infamous Woolly Jones. Suddenly, huge waves engulf and smash their ship. They’re sheepwrecked and stranded on Foggy Island, home to none other than Woolly Jones. After nearly a month of failed attempts to get off the island, Captain Hoof decides to return the shears to their rightful owner. Trekking across the island through fog as thick and impenetrable as wool, captain and crew eventually bump into their nemesis, who snatches the shears from the captain’s hooves. Expecting dire consequences, everyone starts to flee, but things turn out wool, er, well. In a 90-degree book turn, Woolly is depicted using the shears to give himself a much-needed “woolcut.” He’s grateful for the shears—and for the company after a long, lonely spell. Captain Hoof and crew are delighted at this outcome. This is a cute tale, though the plot is a bit thin; the numerous, amusing sheep puns will appeal more to grown-ups than kids. But the digital illustrations are comical and dynamic, and the all-ovine protagonists are lively and expressive. The book contains lots of typographical creativity, including some onomatopoeic words, incorporated into the artwork, and maps in the endpapers include islands bearing funny, aptly punny names.
A cheery story that “wool” likely evoke some smiles. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: July 9, 2024
ISBN: 9780593569665
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
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