Kids may not pick up on much practical advice for their own escapes, but at least they’ll be able to enjoy this boy’s...
It’s always good to have a guide when trying something new, even if that means writing it yourself.
That’s precisely what the book’s red-haired, red-nosed (hat tip to the illustrator’s pseudonym?) hero teaches readers when he decides to run away from home. With his faithful rabbit in tow, he takes readers through each step of the process of hitting the road. After snacks and other necessities have been packed, a route planned and a suitably self-pitying note left, all that remains is the leaving. Soon, the previously confident hero decides his family probably deserves a last chance to do right by him. The instructional tone of the text by and large works, though the book suffers from a needlessly long passage near the beginning detailing what to pack. Ultimately, it’s the photographed models that are the true stars of the show. Extreme use of perspective, remarkable lighting techniques and additional line art shine. A silent, emotionally pungent spread depicts the little boy in the close embrace of his visibly relieved mom. There is a single artistic misstep: The farewell note pinned to the family baby in one scene has mysteriously disappeared in the next, a goof children will notice.
Kids may not pick up on much practical advice for their own escapes, but at least they’ll be able to enjoy this boy’s truncated journey. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86739-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: April 9, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
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More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2026
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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