NOISY BIRD SING-ALONG

Name: NOISY BIRD SING-ALONG
Author: John Himmelman
ISBN: 978-1-58469-513-4

by John Himmelman ; illustrated by John Himmelman ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2015

For fostering nature awareness, this is a welcome companion to the author’s previous titles about noisy bugs and noisy frogs.

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A say-along, sing-along invitation introduces the art of birding by ear through simple, recognizable bird songs and sounds and, mostly, familiar birds.

From the “Cheery up? Cheerio!” of the robin to the “tap, tap, tap” of the downy woodpecker, each spread includes a common phonetic description of a bird’s sound (“Oh Sweet Canada”; “Who cooks for you”; “Chick-a-dee-dee-dee”) and where and when the bird might be found. Spare illustrations accurately show the birds and something of their environments: a yellow warbler on a cattail, a mallard in a pond, a house sparrow on a brick wall. Many of the birds are familiar daytime visitors to backyards and parks; young readers are less likely to encounter nocturnal singers like the barred owl, whip-poor-will and woodcock. A few are specifically northern or eastern. The Anna’s hummingbird is only found on the Pacific coast, but its sound and appearance are not too unlike its eastern ruby-throated counterpart. Further information is included in the backmatter, where readers will find a description of the male woodcocks’ dance and the advice to “pinch your nose shut” while imitating the call of the white-breasted nuthatch. There are also suggestions for other birding activities.

For fostering nature awareness, this is a welcome companion to the author’s previous titles about noisy bugs and noisy frogs. (Informational picture book. 4-9)

Pub Date: March 1, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-58469-513-4

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Dawn Publications

Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
YELLOW IS A BANANA
by John Himmelman ; illustrated by John Himmelman

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BOY WHO LIVED IN A SHELL
by John Himmelman ; illustrated by John Himmelman

- BOOK REVIEW
ALBERT HOPPER, SCIENCE HERO
by John Himmelman ; illustrated by John Himmelman

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

- BOOK REVIEW
PETE THE KITTY AND THE BEANSTALK
by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
PETE THE KITTY'S FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL
by Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
I LOVE PETE THE KITTY
by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

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BIG FOOT AND LITTLE FOOT

From the Big Foot & Little Foot series , Vol. 1

by Ellen Potter ; illustrated by Felicita Sala ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 10, 2018

A charming friendship story and great setup for future books.

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Curious about the Big Wide World outside his Sasquatch community, Hugo makes a friend who is of it.

Sasquatch Hugo’s bedroom is inside a cave and possesses the charming feature of a small stream running through it that he can sail his little toy boat on. It’s cool, but he yearns to see the Big Wide World. When he asks his smart friend Gigi if a Sasquatch might become a sailor, she says it’s possible but would be difficult—the primary rule of their people is to not be seen by Humans. Then, in everyone’s favorite Hide and Go Sneak class, which is held outside, a Human appears; Hugo laughs at the sight, drawing Human attention in a taboo-breaking mistake. Shortly after, Hugo’s toy boat floats into the cave with a Human toy—soon, it’s facilitating a pen-pal–type relationship that’s derailed when Hugo confesses to being a Sasquatch and Human Boone, a budding cryptozoologist, doesn’t believe him. How Hugo and Boone resolve this misapprehension and become friends in a joint search for the Ogopogo concludes this series opener. Potter keeps the third-person narrative tightly focused on Hugo’s perspective, and the details she uses to flesh out the Sasquatch world are delightfully playful. Sala’s drawings depict a homey Sasquatch cavern community, Boone as a freckled, white boy, and Hugo as a hairily benevolent behemoth.

A charming friendship story and great setup for future books. (final art unseen) (Fantasy. 5-9)