No matter how silly it gets, this title never loses its engagement with readers.
A big blue monster and a little yellow monster try to drum up an entertaining dragon story for the audience.
“Oh, hi, everybody,” says the big blue monster at the start of this cockamamie tale. “Want to hear a story? Great!” It is a brief story. “So, there’s this kid… // And he gets eaten by a dragon. / The End!” The little yellow monster suggests a slightly longer tale—one without a dragon. But the big blue monster insists on a hungry dragon character. “Dragon stories usually don’t end well,” warns the little yellow monster. “But, if you insist...” and out comes a story of a dragon that does end well for all concerned, for it was Tuesday, and, as is stipulated on the dragon menu, Tuesday is noodles only. Back in the frame story, the big blue monster says the story is ridiculous, though it doesn’t really matter because a hungry dragon arrives on the storytelling scene and, it being Wednesday, when monsters are on the menu, well…“GULP!” This recursive tale invites young readers right into the storytelling process to create their own, as well as to enjoy the efforts of the two monsters. And Bentley’s artwork, which has the look and liveliness of animated cartoons, works well with the broad fits and starts of storytelling. Pleasingly, in the story within the story, it is the clever damsel of color who saves the day and not the milquetoast white knight.
No matter how silly it gets, this title never loses its engagement with readers. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-12551-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 20, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2018
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series.
Another creature is on the loose.
The long-running series continues its successful formula with this Hallmark card of a book, which features bright illustrations and catchy rhymes. This time, the mythical creature the racially diverse children set out to catch is an absent mom who does it all (lists of descriptors include the words banker, caregiver, nurse, doctor, driver, chef, housekeeper, teacher, entertainer, playmate, laundry service, problem solver, handywoman, cleaner, and alarm clock) but doesn’t seem to have a job outside the home and is inexplicably a dinosaur. As the children prepare gifts and a meal for her, the text becomes an ode to the skills the Mamasaurus possesses (“Day or night she’s always there. / She meets every wish and need”) and values she instills (“Sometimes life can mean hard work,” “kindness matters,” and “what counts is doing your best”). This well-intentioned selection veers into cliche generously sprinkled with saccharine but manages to redeem itself with its appreciation for mothers and all that they may do. Endpapers include a “to” and “from” page framed in a heart, as well as a page where young gift givers or recipients can draw a picture of their Mamasaurus.
A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781728274300
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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