A feel-good read about a friendship that feels real, indeed.
Two friends feel and then heal a rift.
Benny, who presents as White, and Max, who presents as Black, are best friends. Opening scenes show them playing together at Benny’s house. Max seems to enjoy himself, but Benny grows increasingly annoyed by the lack of control he feels he has in their play. Finally, Benny grabs a gaming controller from Max because “Max [is taking] forever to play.” Max doesn’t take kindly to this act, nor to being told to go home. He leaves in a huff, declaring Benny is no longer his best friend. “Good! I’ll find a new best friend!” Benny replies. This “finding” involves making a new best friend named Jax, in a literal sense: Benny gathers boxes and other “odds and ends” and builds a robot who accompanies him in all the activities he once did with Max. Things work out fine until Benny realizes it’s boring to play with someone who never responds or does more than just sit there. In other words, he misses Max. On the penultimate spread, Benny puts Jax into his wagon and goes to Max’s house. His friend welcomes them and introduces his new robot friend, Lenny. All is forgiven, and the boys and their robots play together at book’s end. Cartoon illustrations largely reflect the text, the two boys’ expressions easy to read on their perfectly round faces. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10.2-by-19.6-inch double-page spreads viewed at 15.8% of actual size.)
A feel-good read about a friendship that feels real, indeed. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Nov. 10, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-60537-582-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clavis
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2020
Gives new meaning to the notion that every dog—or pup—has its day.
A young girl learns that plans that go awry need not spoil the day.
Ollie has ambitious intentions for dog sitting Milo, her grandmother’s puppy, but those plans are spoiled when he chews up her drawing, a gift intended for Grandma when she returns from visiting friends. The girl scolds the little dog and then takes some time to herself, leaving him behind and walking farther and farther away from home in order to cool off. But as the illustrations show, Milo is never far behind, surreptitiously trailing her all the way through the woods. Ollie reflects on the part she played in the drawing’s destruction, since she knew better than to leave it unguarded on the floor, and she regrets getting mad at the dog. When she finally stops and wishes for company, the loyal pup is right nearby. They spend their day frolicking in the woods, playing fetch, splashing in mud puddles, and hunting for treasure as pirates. When they return home, she still has time to draw another picture or two. Accessible text with relatable, appealing characters helps the message of adaptability go down smoothly. The charming artwork features various shades of gray as well as pink and red spot color, often in heart shapes. Ollie, who has skin the white of the page, wears a dog costume throughout the story. Her experience demonstrates that things can work out just fine, even when they weren’t what you had in mind.
Gives new meaning to the notion that every dog—or pup—has its day. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9781665965903
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2024
Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back.
With such short arms, how can Tiny T. Rex give a sad friend a hug?
Fleck goes for cute in the simple, minimally detailed illustrations, drawing the diminutive theropod with a chubby turquoise body and little nubs for limbs under a massive, squared-off head. Impelled by the sight of stegosaurian buddy Pointy looking glum, little Tiny sets out to attempt the seemingly impossible, a comforting hug. Having made the rounds seeking advice—the dino’s pea-green dad recommends math; purple, New Age aunt offers cucumber juice (“That is disgusting”); red mom tells him that it’s OK not to be able to hug (“You are tiny, but your heart is big!”), and blue and yellow older sibs suggest practice—Tiny takes up the last as the most immediately useful notion. Unfortunately, the “tree” the little reptile tries to hug turns out to be a pterodactyl’s leg. “Now I am falling,” Tiny notes in the consistently self-referential narrative. “I should not have let go.” Fortunately, Tiny lands on Pointy’s head, and the proclamation that though Rexes’ hugs may be tiny, “I will do my very best because you are my very best friend” proves just the mood-lightening ticket. “Thank you, Tiny. That was the biggest hug ever.” Young audiences always find the “clueless grown-ups” trope a knee-slapper, the overall tone never turns preachy, and Tiny’s instinctive kindness definitely puts him at (gentle) odds with the dinky dino star of Bob Shea’s Dinosaur Vs. series.
Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7033-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 11, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2018
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