That daffy chicken is back, here viewing Halloween in her inimitably self-referential way. “Oh, hello!” she says to a front-porch scarecrow as she looks at decoration cobwebs, “Did you put up the new curtains?” What she loves most of all, of course, is the very sweet corn the farmer is handing out to everyone who rings the bell. There’s no question that Stoeke’s got her formula down pat: Bright, clean panels depict the reality Minerva Louise observes while her obtuse narration thereof runs underneath. In a nod to the times, the author adds a Harry Potter to the princesses, ghosts and witches who visit the house. Hardly revolutionary, either within her own oeuvre or that of the Halloween book, but kids will like it nevertheless. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-525-42149-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
Let these crayons go back into their box.
The Crayons return to celebrate Easter.
Six crayons (Red, Orange, Yellow, Esteban, who is green and wears a yellow cape, White, and Blue) each take a shape and scribble designs on it. Purple, perplexed and almost angry, keeps asking why no one is creating an egg, but the six friends have a great idea. They take the circle decorated with red shapes, the square adorned with orange squiggles “the color of the sun,” the triangle with yellow designs, also “the color of the sun” (a bit repetitious), a rectangle with green wavy lines, a white star, about which Purple remarks: “DID you even color it?” and a rhombus covered with blue markings and slap the shapes onto a big, light-brown egg. Then the conversation turns to hiding the large object in plain sight. The joke doesn’t really work, the shapes are not clear enough for a concept book, and though colors are delineated, it’s not a very original color book. There’s a bit of clever repartee. When Purple observe that Esteban’s green rectangle isn’t an egg, Esteban responds, “No, but MY GOSH LOOK how magnificent it is!” Still, that won’t save this lackluster book, which barely scratches the surface of Easter, whether secular or religious. The multimedia illustrations, done in the same style as the other series entries, are always fun, but perhaps it’s time to retire these anthropomorphic coloring implements. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Let these crayons go back into their box. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-62105-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Children who love dogs will find this amusing the first time through, but the humor palls quickly.
In rhyming text, a bug-eyed pug named Pig stubbornly refuses to share with the almost equally bug-eyed Trevor, the “wiener dog” he lives with—and soon gets his comeuppance.
The book begins showing the eponymous dog astride a large, red bowl of dog food, tongue hanging out and all four paws gripping the bowl. It perfectly matches the text: “Pig was a Pug / and I’m sorry to say, / he was greedy and selfish / in most every way.” A bit of humor comes through when the text plays on the adage about pigs by reminding readers that “pugs cannot fly.” However, most of the text is composed of trite, tired rhymes. The ending is a punch line whose funny picture will have little ones giggling. However, the ultimate “lesson” is a rather dark cynicism, more appropriate to children older than the age suggested by the rhymes, the art, and even the publisher. There may be some vicarious thrills for those who have witnessed excessive selfishness. The artwork is humorous, although Pig’s appearance is sometimes more grotesque than funny—particularly when he shouts at Trevor. Both male dogs’ facial expressions and body language add to the humor, and dog lovers will appreciate Pig’s array of colorful toys. Scansion is spotty, which should not happen in verses so dependent on rhythm and rhyme to entertain their young audience.
Children who love dogs will find this amusing the first time through, but the humor palls quickly. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Dec. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-338-11245-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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