A well-illustrated, if somewhat sedate, tale of a kitten’s cross-country journey.
A cat and his friend travel the Camino de Santiago in Spencer’s illustrated children’s book.
An orange kitten and his two siblings are put up for adoption at a farmer’s market; a pilgrim named Lucía picks him and tells him that together they will travel the Camino to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. She explains that their two-month-long trip will take them across Spain, and that it’s Lucía's last “big adventure” before attending university. Their first stop is at an inn that doesn’t allow cats, but Lucía hides him under some steps and retrieves him in the morning. Soon, she names him Don Pedro Pepito. They later continue their journey through Cruz de Hierro, a place where pilgrims say prayers and place rocks on a hill to “leave [their] troubles behind”; Lucía and Pepito become part of this 1,000-year-old tradition. While Lucía is busy talking with other travelers, Pepito runs after some sheep and falls asleep in a flower patch soon afterward; when he wakes up, he can’t find his friend Lucía. Alone, he continues down the Camino; kind people give him food, but he misses Lucía. After a scary encounter with a dog, Pepito is reunited with his friends at last; they finally make it to the Cathedral, where Lucía's family is waiting, and Pepito becomes a new part of it. A colorful map acts as an introduction to this pilgrimage story, which features appealing ink-and-watercolor illustrations that mainly focus on Pepito, who’s consistently cute throughout. The premise of the book is a promising one that could have offered young readers an exciting adventure. However, the laid-back tone of the work dampens feelings of conflict or tension, making it read more like a slice-of-life tale with disconnected events. The book features sporadic Spanish terms, and it includes an informative glossary at the end.
A well-illustrated, if somewhat sedate, tale of a kitten’s cross-country journey.Pub Date: July 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798218119119
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Nov. 8, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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