by Jill Twiss ; illustrated by E.G. Keller ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 4, 2019
The grown-ups who buy this will already, like their offspring, have bought the message
The creators of A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo (2018) press another topical hot button.
Replete with twee Capital Letters, the tale sends Jitterbug the chipmunk skittering from her cozy nest in search of the Something New that her sensitive tummy tells her has come to the forest. Along the way she meets friends who share important thoughts she tucks away as irrelevant but “good information.” The Something turns out to be a Someone, namely slow-talking Pudding the snail, a refugee from the recently flooded garden over the hill. Prompted by fear of change, Jitterbug peremptorily orders Pudding to turn back. But when her less jittery animal neighbors gang up to point out that she’s being irrational, Jitterbug acknowledges her mistake. Back comes Pudding (who hadn’t gotten very far anyway) to make a new home and become a Very Good Friend. In splashy digital watercolors Keller adds at least some flavor to the precious narrative, placing animated forest creatures with mildly anthropomorphic postures and expressions into pleasant sylvan surroundings and strapping a backpack atop Pudding’s brightly striped shell. Jitterbug may judge the thought that “even though New can be scary, kindness is stronger than fear” to be “very good information,” but her change of heart at the shrink-wrapped climax comes with superficial ease.
The grown-ups who buy this will already, like their offspring, have bought the message . (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: June 4, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-293374-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 25, 2019
Share your opinion of this book
More by Jill Twiss
BOOK REVIEW
by Jill Twiss ; illustrated by Maribel Lechuga
BOOK REVIEW
by Jill Twiss ; illustrated by E.G. Keller
BOOK REVIEW
by Jill Twiss ; illustrated by E.G. Keller
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 4, 2014
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends
Gerald the elephant learns a truth familiar to every preschooler—heck, every human: “Waiting is not easy!”
When Piggie cartwheels up to Gerald announcing that she has a surprise for him, Gerald is less than pleased to learn that the “surprise is a surprise.” Gerald pumps Piggie for information (it’s big, it’s pretty, and they can share it), but Piggie holds fast on this basic principle: Gerald will have to wait. Gerald lets out an almighty “GROAN!” Variations on this basic exchange occur throughout the day; Gerald pleads, Piggie insists they must wait; Gerald groans. As the day turns to twilight (signaled by the backgrounds that darken from mauve to gray to charcoal), Gerald gets grumpy. “WE HAVE WASTED THE WHOLE DAY!…And for WHAT!?” Piggie then gestures up to the Milky Way, which an awed Gerald acknowledges “was worth the wait.” Willems relies even more than usual on the slightest of changes in posture, layout and typography, as two waiting figures can’t help but be pretty static. At one point, Piggie assumes the lotus position, infuriating Gerald. Most amusingly, Gerald’s elephantine groans assume weighty physicality in spread-filling speech bubbles that knock Piggie to the ground. And the spectacular, photo-collaged images of the Milky Way that dwarf the two friends makes it clear that it was indeed worth the wait.
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends . (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9957-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2014
Share your opinion of this book
More In The Series
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
More by Mo Willems
BOOK REVIEW
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
BOOK REVIEW
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
BOOK REVIEW
by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems
by Matthew Cordell ; illustrated by Matthew Cordell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 7, 2023
A spellbinding tale that will never brown or fade with time.
Soup is always the correct solution.
Evergreen, a young squirrel who lives high in a tree in Buckthorn Forest, is afraid of most things, but top of the list is thunderstorms. When her mother, who makes magical soup, asks her to take an acorn full of soup to Granny Oak, who is ill with the flu, Evergreen is afraid that she won’t be brave enough to do it. But she knows she must—and that she must be careful not to spill a drop, as “Granny Oak will need every bit of it to get better.” Setting off, the scared squirrel encounters a menagerie of adventures and forest creatures in her journey. It’s a wild, imaginative read and one that twists and turns like a forest path, with unexpected surprises along the way. Cordell is a masterful storyteller, and readers will love following Evergreen’s journey as she grows into a more confident squirrel. The artwork is the real star of the show, however; there’s a hint of Sendak in the characters’ humorous expressions and in the timeless pen-and-watercolor backgrounds that cry out to be examined in detail. Educators and caregivers will love reading this story aloud in installments, and readers will adore seeing what Evergreen encounters in her travels. A hint of future stories will tantalize readers, who will close the book eager for a new volume to devour.
A spellbinding tale that will never brown or fade with time. (Early chapter book. 6-8)Pub Date: Feb. 7, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-31717-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
Share your opinion of this book
More by Matthew Cordell
BOOK REVIEW
by Matthew Cordell ; illustrated by Matthew Cordell
BOOK REVIEW
by Sara Pennypacker ; illustrated by Matthew Cordell
BOOK REVIEW
by Philip C. Stead ; illustrated by Matthew Cordell
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.