Funny and full of motion.
You never know when an extra ninja will come in handy.
Having completed some serious (but hilarious) ninja training and defeated a large bear (Ninja Bunny, 2015), the lightning-fast Ninja Bunny is back. He’s a child-shaped rabbit in a blue suit and mask; his pals are pale beige like him, though they don’t wear suits. But there’s somebody new here: a smaller, red-ninja–suited figure also claiming the title—and the skills—of Ninja Bunny. Blue ninja, exasperated, hollers, “MOMMMMM!!!!” and from offpage, in a speech bubble, comes a decidedly non-ninjalike instruction: “Play with your sister, dear.” He claims that “she’s too little to jump high,” but vignettes, panels, and full spreads show her jumping and kicking with enthusiasm and prowess. She needs to run to keep up, but she can balance upside-down on her frustrated brother’s head with one hand: she’s plenty stretchy and strong. Olson’s ink-and-watercolor illustrations zip and zoom with mobile postures, leaps, and expressive eyebrows. Defying gravity, bunnies even kick and flip while aloft and moving uphill. When the ninja mission calls for stealing the Golden Carrot of Awesomeness (grown by Farmer McGregor, in a wink to Beatrix Potter), which is protected by seemingly impenetrable vines, only the smallest ninja can solve the quandary and execute the task—earning delighted respect from her big brother.
Funny and full of motion. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-55074-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends.
Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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