Informative and empathetic.
When human encroachment eliminates a young fox’s forest habitat, it searches to find a new home.
The lone fox narrates in the first person, beginning the story with recollections of how its family had lived together in their forest, hunting and playing. During its young life, encroachment has depleted the forest, leaving it fragmented. Alone, the fox wanders through housing developments, along viaducts, and past vacant lots. Each place reminds the fox of a particular family member: at the concrete viaduct, it recalls playing with a sister in what used to be a stream. When it reaches the wide freeway, the fox remembers when its father discovered a deer that had been trapped and realizes it is trapped now, too. The fox wanders until it comes upon construction workers who have built a highway wildlife tunnel for safe passage under dangerous roads. Without being maudlin, author Thompson’s words give a gentle, reflective tone to the story that addresses not only habitat reduction, but also the difficult problem of animals and vehicles. Illustrator Thompson’s luminous artwork adds empathy to the text and offers hope not only for the fox, but also for many wild creatures; a sign indicating the site of a future wildlife preserve will ease many young listeners’ anxiety.
Informative and empathetic. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-544-70711-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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BOOK REVIEW
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