A simple tale that will have readers cheering.
A look into a bygone era of the circus through the life of an elephant.
Told mostly through the art, this tale follows a young elephant who is unceremoniously taken from their home and sold to the circus. They forge an unlikely friendship with a magician, who finds a way to put things right. Each page has one word that begins with ele—“ELEPHANT”: the young animal with their parent. “ELEPH-ATE”: The elephant is lured into a trap by bananas. “ELE-FATE”: the elephant is ensnared. The story does not shy away from the harsher aspects, such as the terror of the kidnapping, but readers also see the elephant’s joy as they befriend the magician and love and trust grow. The words are written in a beautiful script that evokes circus signs, and the text flows well when read aloud, though at times some of the invented words feel a bit clunky. The images are the stars of the show; rendered in gouache, they fill the pages, depicting both the drama of the circus acts and quieter moments as the elephant longs to return to their past life. The magician is light-skinned; circus performers and attendees are diverse. In an author’s note, Yolen describes the true story that inspired this book—in 1982, Broadway producer David Balding bought an orphaned baby elephant from Zimbabwe and created a circus for her. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A simple tale that will have readers cheering. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 17, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7681-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers.
The bestselling series (How to Catch an Elf, 2016, etc.) about capturing mythical creatures continues with a story about various ways to catch the Easter Bunny as it makes its annual deliveries.
The bunny narrates its own story in rhyming text, beginning with an introduction at its office in a manufacturing facility that creates Easter eggs and candy. The rabbit then abruptly takes off on its delivery route with a tiny basket of eggs strapped to its back, immediately encountering a trap with carrots and a box propped up with a stick. The narrative focuses on how the Easter Bunny avoids increasingly complex traps set up to catch him with no explanation as to who has set the traps or why. These traps include an underground tunnel, a fluorescent dance floor with a hidden pit of carrots, a robot bunny, pirates on an island, and a cannon that shoots candy fish, as well as some sort of locked, hazardous site with radiation danger. Readers of previous books in the series will understand the premise, but others will be confused by the rabbit’s frenetic escapades. Cartoon-style illustrations have a 1960s vibe, with a slightly scary, bow-tied bunny with chartreuse eyes and a glowing palette of neon shades that shout for attention.
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3817-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Toad and Little Blue Truck get ready for a hayride.
After the titular vehicle is loaded with hay, Toad is nowhere to be found. “Beep! Beep! Beep! Where are you, Toad?” asks Little Blue Truck. All the barnyard animals look for him. Sheep searches the meadow. Goose and Duck check the pond. Others pitch in, too, but Toad seems to have disappeared…until Hen hears snoring coming from the pile of hay in the back of Little Blue Truck. Although the text’s scansion is imperfect in places (adults may want to pre-read to ensure a smooth read-aloud), the bouncy meter and rhyming text nevertheless capture the energy of the search and the farmyard community’s concern for Toad’s safety, making this a solid storytime choice. Eye-catching illustrations with rich, fully saturated colors balance the right level of detail while still highlighting the animal that is the focus of each verse. By introducing one farm animal at a time, Schertle also helps the youngest readers begin to identify barnyard animals by name and understand their unique farm homes. Traditional animal sounds are part of the text, and listeners will add them to their vocabulary. It all ends with the promised hayride, bringing the tale to a joyous ending.
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2026
ISBN: 9780063436121
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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