Anything but ruff.
An interactive, melodic adventure involving an unlikely pair.
Following instructions at the start, readers are requested to participate by making a barking sound anytime a red circle appears and meowing anytime there is a yellow diamond. It is, after all, a “bark-along, meow-along book.” Inspired by Oliver Goldsmith’s “An Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog” (from which it lifts one complete stanza and also the poem’s rhythm), the tale begins with a stray cat in a neighborhood of many dogs. The cat is hiding, stealthy, until one dog sniffs her out. This black pup, whose fur, rendered in Paschkis’ characteristic folk-art style, resembles a Renaissance ruff collar, just wants to play. In an abrupt turn of events (that takes its lead from its elegiac form), “One day a rock fell from above / and knocked the dog near dead. // With tender tongue and gentle love / the cat repaired his head.” After that, the duo becomes inseparable (the barking and meowing prompts, which were at first individual, are now combined). In a rousing cacophonous finale, “A hundred barks ring through the park” (red circles cover the page) “and one small stray meow” (a tiny yellow diamond conclusion). A large storytime crowd may not be able to see the symbols, but a clever leader can still orchestrate the group, and it will be great fun in a lap with pre-readers. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Anything but ruff. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: Sept. 21, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-9260-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
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