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
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2026
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