Subtly beautiful, with a message of peace.
This Portuguese import contemplates war and peace by upending a planned duel.
Two men decide to settle their disagreements by dueling. In a barren landscape, each begins the 100-pace walk away from the other, weapon in hand. Yet one, who narrates, simply walks on. He ambles through increasingly vibrant vistas in a pulsing city, witnessing a parade, a circus, and a puppet show. Skin tones, where discernible in the tiny figures, appear pale. With each page turn, the errant duelist encounters fewer people and more animals. In increasingly bucolic scenes, he trades his pistol for a walking stick. Narration—its meaning at times elusive—takes the form of a letter written to his dueling partner, the “Esteemed Mr Rodin Rostov.” Oliveira’s Klee-esque illustrations are stunning. Monochromatic early scenes metamorphose in successive palette shifts: saturated primary colors accented by neutrals for the cityscapes, then greens and ochers as the narrator treks through a village and a pasture. When he ponders his fate, constellations frame images of animals in an ink-blue sky. Over land and water, in fair weather and rain, he finally descends a mountain into a lush, flower-filled meadow. There, he pens his missive, posting it in his top hat. His note implores his friend to “put down your weapons and come on over / to see me, would you?” A migrating white bird takes up the envelope, even as the narrator himself seemingly metamorphoses, achieving unity with nature.
Subtly beautiful, with a message of peace. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781644214022
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Triangle Square Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2024
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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