Sashays down the runway but fails to make any lasting impression.
Eleven wild creatures model mud, oil, dead ants, poop, and other fashion-forward accessories.
Though the conceit has at least as much promise as that of her I See Sea Food: Sea Creatures That Look Like Food (2019), Grodzicki shows an odd reluctance to own it. She characterizes both the iron-rich muck that bearded vultures rub into their feathers and the anal-gland oil that flamingos rub into theirs to make them even more “Pretty in Pink” as actual adornment. However, she contradicts her own language to note that wild boars aren’t wallowing in “muddy body paint” to “make a fashion statement,” and even after heading an entry “BLING! BLING!” she explains that the pile of “jewelry” (i.e. bits of plant and animal debris) that lacewing larvae carry around for protection “isn’t sparkly or flashy.” Overall the author’s comments about how various found or excreted substances play roles in predation, defense, or attracting a mate (just like with people, not that she makes that connection) are spot-on, and the big, sharply focused, close-up stock photos will be a strong draw. But the ready way she abandons her premise muddles the presentation and will likely leave readers feeling confused or let down. Steer young naturalists first to the similar but more bounteous Creature Features: 25 Animals Explain Why They Look the Way They Do by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page (2014). (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.75-by-19.5-inch double-page spreads viewed at 58% of actual size.)
Sashays down the runway but fails to make any lasting impression. (summary fact boxes, glossary) (Informational picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5415-8123-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020
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 nifty high-seas caper for chapter-book readers with a love of adventure and a yearning for treasure.
It’s not truffles but doubloons that tickle this porcine wayfarer’s fancy.
Funke and Meyer make another foray into chapter-book fare after Emma and the Blue Genie (2014). Here, mariner Stout Sam and deckhand Pip eke out a comfortable existence on Butterfly Island ferrying cargo to and fro. Life is good, but it takes an unexpected turn when a barrel washes ashore containing a pig with a skull-and-crossbones pendant around her neck. It soon becomes clear that this little piggy, dubbed Julie, has the ability to sniff out treasure—lots of it—in the sea. The duo is pleased with her skills, but pride goeth before the hog. Stout Sam hands out some baubles to the local children, and his largess attracts the unwanted attention of Barracuda Bill and his nasty minions. Now they’ve pignapped Julie, and it’s up to the intrepid sailors to save the porker and their own bacon. The succinct word count meets the needs of kids looking for early adventure fare. The tale is slight, bouncy, and amusing, though Julie is never the piratical buccaneer the book’s cover seems to suggest. Meanwhile, Meyer’s cheery watercolors are as comfortable diagramming the different parts of a pirate vessel as they are rendering the dread pirate captain himself.
A nifty high-seas caper for chapter-book readers with a love of adventure and a yearning for treasure. (Adventure. 7-9)Pub Date: June 23, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-385-37544-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2015
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