A silly little series opener.
A large, wacky family struggles to pick a family pet.
The Pepper family (mother Tee, father Sal, Meemaw, and six kids between the ages of 2 and 12) live in one “crazypants” house. The plot kicks off when 8-year-old Annie schemes to get a family pet after rescuing a tiny Chihuahua, Azzie, from a pack of squirrels. Azzie lives at Frida Flamingo’s Animal Adoption Agency. However, their father has a strict “Peppers don’t do pets” rule. Using both facts and appeals to emotion, she rallies her family to get a pet. But Annie’s adoption of Azzie isn’t guaranteed, as her siblings can’t decide on what kind of pet. Instead of compromising, and in accordance with Pepper family tradition, they draw a name out of a hat. Aspiring horror movie–maker Beta wins and picks a telegenic tarantula. Frustrated that Beta picked a “family” pet only he would enjoy, Annie gives in to a dark impulse and lets the spider out, leading to a humorous bathroom mishap (related from tarantula Harry’s perspective) that sends him back to the shelter and the Peppers back to the hat. On the cycle of animal disasters goes, until the Peppers are banned from pet adoption and every kid’s heartbroken. At last Annie comes up with a cinematic scheme to make things right, and the Pepper parents commit to responsible pet ownership. The third-person narration is smart, well-paced, and funny; Cooper’s grayscale cartoons add fizz. Annie and Beta are both blond and appear white, but some family members seem to have slightly-darker-than–paper-white skin.
A silly little series opener. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: May 28, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-29702-7
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale.
After a tsunami devastates their habitat in the Salish Sea, a young orca and her brother embark on a remarkable adventure.
Vega’s matriarchal family expects her to become a hunter and wayfinder, with her younger brother, Deneb, protecting and supporting her. Invited to guide her family to their Gathering Place to hunt salmon, Vega’s underwater miscalculations endanger them all, and an embarrassed Vega questions whether she should be a wayfinder. When the baby sister she hoped would become her life companion is stillborn, a distraught Vega carries the baby away to a special resting place, shocking her grieving family. Dispatched to find his missing sister, Deneb locates Vega in the midst of a terrible tsunami. To escape the waters polluted by shattered boats, Vega leads Deneb into unfamiliar open sea. Alone and hungry, the young siblings encounter a spectacular giant whale and travel briefly with shark-hunting orcas. Trusting her instincts and gaining emotional strength from contemplating the vastness of the sky, Vega knows she must lead her brother home and help save her surviving family. In alternating first-person voices, Vega and Deneb tell their harrowing story, engaging young readers while educating them about the marine ecosystem. Realistic black-and-white illustrations enhance the maritime setting.
A dramatic, educational, authentic whale of a tale. (maps, wildlife facts, tribes of the Salish Sea watershed, environmental and geographical information, how to help orcas, author’s note, artist’s note, resources) (Animal fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-299592-6
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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