A sympathetic adventure starring a beloved sea mammal.
A young male sea otter leaves his original raft to strike out on his own, encountering environmental dangers created by humans.
The present-tense narrative stays with Kah-Lan’s viewpoint as he ventures away from his mother and other female otters and pups. He is eager for adventure and to find his own companions. Hyphenated words describe much of what Kah-Lan sees and experiences: sea-trees and land-trees; stink-ink for the dark cloud of oil in the water; sea-meat for what he’d be if an orca caught him as well as his own prey; dive-and-dig and roll-and-rinse for otter actions; drift-trees for paddleboards. He recognizes the relative ages—Elders and pups—of “the strange furless ones that walk on their hind legs”; their human speech is shown in italics. Marine creatures are named in ways readers will find familiar: octopus, sea gull, seal, shark, and the orcas that would eat him. Otter habits of storing food in fur pouches, using rocks to pound shells, and meticulously grooming are all introduced. Kah-Lan’s reactions are described in terms of human emotion: he is “giddy with adventure”; he feels “prickles of concern.” When Kah-Lan and another two young male otters swim into an oil spill, he becomes very ill. The otters are taken to a marine mammal rescue center where one otter dies, but Kah-Lan is healed. An extensive author’s note offers facts and context. The mostly declarative sentences have an unvaried rhythm that makes for somewhat ponderous reading, but Autio’s empathy and Kah-Lan’s intriguing perspective help to make up for this. Children who have some familiarity with marine mammal rescue centers may be its most likely readership. (Illustrations not seen.)
A sympathetic adventure starring a beloved sea mammal. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-989724-07-1
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Crwth Press
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
Another winner from Mills, equally well suited to reading aloud and independent reading.
When Franklin School principal Mr. Boone announces a pet-show fundraiser, white third-grader Cody—whose lack of skill and interest in academics is matched by keen enthusiasm for and knowledge of animals—discovers his time to shine.
As with other books in this series, the children and adults are believable and well-rounded. Even the dialogue is natural—no small feat for a text easily accessible to intermediate readers. Character growth occurs, organically and believably. Students occasionally, humorously, show annoyance with teachers: “He made mad squinty eyes at Mrs. Molina, which fortunately she didn’t see.” Readers will be kept entertained by Cody’s various problems and the eventual solutions. His problems include needing to raise $10 to enter one of his nine pets in the show (he really wants to enter all of them), his troublesome dog Angus—“a dog who ate homework—actually, who ate everything and then threw up afterward”—struggles with homework, and grappling with his best friend’s apparently uncaring behavior toward a squirrel. Serious values and issues are explored with a light touch. The cheery pencil illustrations show the school’s racially diverse population as well as the memorable image of Mr. Boone wearing an elephant costume. A minor oddity: why does a child so immersed in animal facts call his male chicken a rooster but his female chickens chickens?
Another winner from Mills, equally well suited to reading aloud and independent reading. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: June 14, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-374-30223-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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