developed by JustKidsApps ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 31, 2012
Although the alternative narrative tries a little too hard to explain the morals of the story, this is a clever update of a...
This version of the traditional Grimm Brothers' fairy tale of a frog under a curse and the self-absorbed princess he needs to save him offers an alternative reading and lots of extras.
Read the familiar story through, then start over with the "Version with a Funny Twist," which provides a running commentary and an alternative ending. This format explores the morals of the story while questioning the archaic "princess marries the handsome prince and lives happily ever after" theme. Amid the sounds of chirping frogs, the optional British-accented narration (also available in German) transports readers to the royal gardens. Filled with humans and amphibians that vocalize when touched, the detailed and brightly colored illustrations can be enlarged for closer viewing—and readers are advised to look closely, as some of those details appear in a quiz at the end. Fairy-dust clues are easily spotted by little ones and indicate the simple touch and tilt animations. The games and jokes in the extras section are more fun than the story itself and include a fact page about frogs and toads and a prize to be won if the quiz is completed correctly.
Although the alternative narrative tries a little too hard to explain the morals of the story, this is a clever update of a classic that allows young readers to question old stereotypes. (iPad storybook app. 4-8)Pub Date: May 31, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: JustKidsApps
Review Posted Online: June 26, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2012
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by Loren Long & illustrated by Loren Long ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2009
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
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SEEN & HEARD
by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2017
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
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