Imagination is a powerful tool; perhaps this will show readers how to harness its powers to tame their fears instead of...
Instead of worrying about the many monsters and ghouls that are typical Halloween haunts, a young girl, who narrates in the first person as she lies in bed, uses her imagination to put her fears to rest.
After an opening verse and an image of the girl with her blankets pulled up to her chin, Solimine’s first spread-spanning illustration shows the girl in bed in her room, the blue monochrome illustration showing all sorts of spooky things. But this little girl isn’t one to panic. Instead, she lets her curiosity take charge, the illustrations depicting each silly scenario: “Are MUMMIES fond of long bike rides / just like normal folks? / Or do their crusty bandages / get tangled in the spokes?” Do ghosts teach their pets to play dead? Does Dracula floss? Does the Boogeyman wipe his boogers on his sleeve? The final spread returns readers to the bedroom, only now the spooky things are gone, replaced by the objects that inspired them: the tentacle beneath the bed? Only a scarf. “All these questions make the ghoulish appear foolish / and the ghostly mostly meek. / Being scared is so silly now that / monsters seem so weak!” Though the text’s scansion is sometimes off, Solimine’s pencil, pen, and Photoshop illustrations are sure to tickle readers’ funny bones (and disgust them as well). The palette is heavy on orange, green, and purple; the girl has brown skin and brown braids.
Imagination is a powerful tool; perhaps this will show readers how to harness its powers to tame their fears instead of feeding them. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 14, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-399-54641-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers.
The bestselling series (How to Catch an Elf, 2016, etc.) about capturing mythical creatures continues with a story about various ways to catch the Easter Bunny as it makes its annual deliveries.
The bunny narrates its own story in rhyming text, beginning with an introduction at its office in a manufacturing facility that creates Easter eggs and candy. The rabbit then abruptly takes off on its delivery route with a tiny basket of eggs strapped to its back, immediately encountering a trap with carrots and a box propped up with a stick. The narrative focuses on how the Easter Bunny avoids increasingly complex traps set up to catch him with no explanation as to who has set the traps or why. These traps include an underground tunnel, a fluorescent dance floor with a hidden pit of carrots, a robot bunny, pirates on an island, and a cannon that shoots candy fish, as well as some sort of locked, hazardous site with radiation danger. Readers of previous books in the series will understand the premise, but others will be confused by the rabbit’s frenetic escapades. Cartoon-style illustrations have a 1960s vibe, with a slightly scary, bow-tied bunny with chartreuse eyes and a glowing palette of neon shades that shout for attention.
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3817-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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