With evident affection and sly humor, this paean to a beloved pet perfectly captures this (and thus every) cat’s allure.
An unseen (until the end) narrator describes a beloved cat; snippets of information about feline physiology and behavior are included.
Feline fanciers will be immediately charmed by the unnamed, yellow-eyed black cat who prowls the pages of this French import (and, in one utterly convincing portrait, sprawls atop a radiator in boneless comfort). Brief text describes typical cat activities; humorously contradictory illustrations add to the charm. Pictures of a sleeping cat across two spreads, for example, appear with this sentence: “When he runs // his athletic body propels him.” Declarative sentences employ sometimes-challenging vocabulary, including “vigilant” and “agile and acrobatic.” Occasionally split over two double-page spreads, the straightforward sentences move the book along smoothly despite a longer-than-usual format. Asterisked notes appear at the bottoms of most double-page spreads to provide basic information and some quirky details. Readers may skip them entirely with no negative impact, but they will likely add interest for some young listeners. Simler’s artwork, which has the appearance of drawings created with pastels, has a delightfully scratchy texture and displays an intriguing use of light, particularly in the nighttime scenes. Backgrounds are simply sketched, and abundant white space allows the text to stand out crisply. Bright colors and appealing details create a sense of the comfortable home where the cat and his companion dwell.
With evident affection and sly humor, this paean to a beloved pet perfectly captures this (and thus every) cat’s allure. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5525-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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
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