A charming and adorably illustrated holiday tale of canine adventure and city exploration.
A lost dog navigates Portland, Oregon, at Christmastime in this illustrated children’s book.
Brownie, a brown and white Swiss Bernese, is thrilled to visit Portland with her human family to see the holiday decorations (“PDX, as it’s known, was all dressed up in lights / Loaded with Christmas-y, tasty delights”). When the canine gets lost, she roams the city looking for her family but gets distracted by delicious smells and festive sights, including Santa’s North Pole, a kids’ “winter wonderland faire,” and “great Christmas ships” on the river. But when “the big, peckish pup” smells something yummy on one of the boats, she hops aboard and messily devours a pot of fondue, horrifying the vessel’s humans. Back on land, Brownie grows cold and scared. As she cries, she is approached by a marten with a “bright red beret” named Martin (“Trash is my game”). He gives the sad pooch shelter and sustenance. The next day, the two critters head to Pioneer Square to find Brownie’s family. Things feel hopeless until Brownie gets a familiar whiff of bacon. She follows the scent “straight to her family!”—which is happy to see her. Back home, Brownie, her family (two adults and three kids), and Martin enjoy a pleasant Christmas. Stoner provides an engaging insider look at Portland’s lively holiday happenings. Those familiar with the city will enjoy spotting recognizable locales and events, while others will appreciate Portland’s offerings through the eyes of the daring dog protagonist. Khmelevska’s energetic illustrations show joyful, bustling city scenes and the cheerful White family. They feature holiday accents such as sparkles, snow-dusted dwellings, and Christmas spectacles like a gigantic tree. Recognizable Portland locations are noted in the images, including Powell’s City of Books and the Burnside Bridge.
A charming and adorably illustrated holiday tale of canine adventure and city exploration.Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-954017-05-4
Page Count: 59
Publisher: Marionberry Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property.
Since a reformed Grinch is hardly any fun, this follow-up Grinches him up once more.
Those seeking more of the same, prepare to receive precisely that. Christmas is coming (again!), and the Grinch can hardly wait. He’s been patient all year, and now he can finally show the Whos down in Who-ville how much he’s changed. When the Grinch learns of a tree-decorating contest, he figures that if he wins, it’ll prove he truly has the Christmas spirit. He throws himself into the task, but when it comes time to judge the trees, the Grinch is horrified to discover that he’s received only the second-place trophy. Can Cindy-Lou Who find the words to save the day? Replicating many of the original beats and wordplay of the original, this tale feels like less a sequel and more like a vaguely rewritten variation. Meanwhile, Ruiz’s art seeks to bridge the gap between the animated Chuck Jones version of the Grinch and the one depicted in the original book. This thankless task results in a strange uncanny valley between Seuss and Jones but does allow the artist a chance to colorize everything and lend some racial diversity to the Who population (Cindy-Lou is light-skinned). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593563168
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
