For those who have had their fill of sweet stories about jolly old St. Nick, McCoy offers something quite a bit different. The main character in this edgy holiday tale is a nervous little boy who is so obsessed with Santa monitoring his behavior that the child is undergoing counseling (from a psychologist or psychiatrist who remains hidden in his wing-backed chair). The boy confesses that he sees the same Santa character everywhere: at the movies, the zoo, the fair, with a biker gang, even getting a tattoo, and the final page reveals that even the counselor is one of the ubiquitous Santa characters. The cartoon-style illustrations portray this rather disturbing Santa figure as morbidly obese, with a bulbous nose, huge beard and large mouth, wearing a different outfit in each illustration. Adult readers will get a chuckle out of the cover illustration, portraying the little boy in mid-shriek on a bridge, echoing The Scream, but they may also want to scream at the thought of Santa getting a tattoo or smoking a cigar. (Picture book. 6-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-7868-1833-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
The leaves have changed, Thanksgiving nears—and the canny turkeys of Squawk Valley have decamped, leaving local residents to face the prospect of a birdless holiday. What to do? They decide to lure a bird back by appealing to its vanity, placing a want ad for a model to help sculptors creating turkey art, then “inviting” the bird to dinner. The ploy works, too, for out of the woods struts plump and perky Pete to take on the job. Shelly debuts with brightly hued cartoon scenes featuring pop-eyed country folk and deceptively silly-looking gobblers. Pete may be vain, but he hasn’t lost the wiliness of his wild ancestors; when the townsfolk come for him, he hides amidst a flock of sculpted gobblers—“There were turkeys made of spuds, / there were turkeys made of rope. / There were turkeys made of paper, / there were turkeys made of soap. / The room was full of turkeys / in a wall to wall collage. / For a clever bird like Pete / it was perfect camouflage.” He makes his escape, and is last seen lounging on a turkey-filled tropical beach as the disappointed Squawk Valleyites gather round the table for a main course of . . . shredded wheat. Good for a few giggles. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-890817-91-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2001
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