A read sure to banish melancholy feelings once and for all.
Friends can brighten one’s disposition.
Deep in his lair, Bear’s lonely because no one’s around to play with him. Mouse, Wren, and Owl are foraging, while Hare’s helping his sister dig weeds. Badger’s fishing, and Gopher and Mole are digging tunnels. Raven, writing poetry, can’t be disturbed. “I’m bored!” sighs Bear. “I don’t want to be alone!” “And the bear feels sad”—a refrain the rhyming text repeats frequently. Bear’s carrot snack isn’t so tasty when there’s no one to share it with. Building a blanket fort passes the time, but it isn’t nearly as much fun on his own. Even the discovery of a field filled with beautiful flowers is cause for unhappiness—his buddies can’t see them. Bear fashions bouquets uniquely suited to each friend. Thinking about his pals gladdens him somewhat, and he heads home. Near his den, Bear hears voices: His friends have returned, bearing gifts for him from their exploits. Raven reads his poem, and Bear distributes his bouquets. Everyone plays and chats. Bear’s mood now? “GLAD!” This sweet tale, expressed in well-constructed verse, makes keen observations about how the warmth of camaraderie can swiftly turn sadness to joy. The sunshine-bright acrylic illustrations, featuring endearing animal characters, will lift readers’ spirits as the kindness of Bear’s companions boosts his own.
A read sure to banish melancholy feelings once and for all. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9781665936576
Page Count: 40
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2025
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Toad and Little Blue Truck get ready for a hayride.
After the titular vehicle is loaded with hay, Toad is nowhere to be found. “Beep! Beep! Beep! Where are you, Toad?” asks Little Blue Truck. All the barnyard animals look for him. Sheep searches the meadow. Goose and Duck check the pond. Others pitch in, too, but Toad seems to have disappeared…until Hen hears snoring coming from the pile of hay in the back of Little Blue Truck. Although the text’s scansion is imperfect in places (adults may want to pre-read to ensure a smooth read-aloud), the bouncy meter and rhyming text nevertheless capture the energy of the search and the farmyard community’s concern for Toad’s safety, making this a solid storytime choice. Eye-catching illustrations with rich, fully saturated colors balance the right level of detail while still highlighting the animal that is the focus of each verse. By introducing one farm animal at a time, Schertle also helps the youngest readers begin to identify barnyard animals by name and understand their unique farm homes. Traditional animal sounds are part of the text, and listeners will add them to their vocabulary. It all ends with the promised hayride, bringing the tale to a joyous ending.
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2026
ISBN: 9780063436121
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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