While the final twist is a bit heavy-handed, overall, the emotional honesty, simple, understated text, and entertaining...
A series of minor disappointments leads Bernice to make a greedy grab at a friend’s birthday party which in turn spurs an unexpected change of heart.
Harrison’s acrylic paintings, a mix of double-page spreads, single pages, and occasional vignettes, depict a group of anthropomorphic animals celebrating in a forest setting. Old-fashioned outfits and activities contrast pleasingly with characters that are simultaneously cartoony and realistic in appearance and visually developed with touches of sly humor. Bernice’s increasing frustration shows in both her face and body language as she gets a plain piece of cake (no frosting rose), has to settle for warm prune-grapefruit soda, and misses out on the candy from a prematurely punctured piñata. In her determination to pluck some pleasure from the day she snatches the whole bunch of balloons and suddenly floats up into the sky. The change of scene allows her to quickly, if not entirely believably, recognize how petty her problems are. Sharing the balloons enables her to land safely while improving the moods of assorted quirky characters including a glum rain cloud, a crotchety squirrel, and a sad mother bluebird.
While the final twist is a bit heavy-handed, overall, the emotional honesty, simple, understated text, and entertaining visual humor combine to create an appealing take on a problem that occasionally plagues us all, whether child, adult, or grumpy cat. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3916-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 31, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2015
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way.
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 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
