With an invitingly small trim size and easy-to-track action, this title can be perused by pre-readers employing their...
Kuma-Kuma Chan (“cute little bear” in Japanese) stars in his second book to be translated for English-speaking audiences.
In this episode, a young man receives an invitation to the animal’s home. Although the trek involves catching a train, riding a bus, and walking, he obliges. Soft, earth-tone scenes placed against generous cream-colored expanses depict their pleasant day together. The unhurried pace and well-honed routines may remind listeners of visiting an elderly relative. The home even “smells slightly of bear.” The pair has tea, unsure of what to discuss at first, so they “watch the dust floating around in the afternoon sunbeams.” Conversation picks up by dinnertime, when salmon is served. The evening concludes with companionship in front of the TV until it is time for the guest to board the bus. The portrayal of such a visit rings true, acknowledging moments of uncertainty and offering a model for what to notice and how to navigate silence. The first-person account, told from the friend’s perspective, is quietly affectionate and descriptive, never judgmental.
With an invitingly small trim size and easy-to-track action, this title can be perused by pre-readers employing their narrative skills independently or shared with a loved one for an interlude of calm and contentment. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: May 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-940842-09-7
Page Count: 52
Publisher: Museyon
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2016
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BOOK REVIEW
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A funny David-versus-Goliath story with a one-word question serving as the slingshot. (Picture book. 3-5)
Doctor X-Ray, a megalomaniac with an X-ray blaster and an indestructible battle suit, crashes through the ceiling of the local mall.
Innocent patrons scatter to safety. But one curious child gazes directly at the bully and asks: “Why?” At first, Doctor X-Ray answers with all the menace and swagger of a supervillain. The curious child, armed with only a stuffed bear and clad in a bright red dress, is not satisfied with the answers and continues asking: “Why?” As his pale cheeks flush with emotion, Doctor X-Ray peels back the onion of his interior life, unearthing powerful reasons behind his pursuit of tyranny. This all sounds heavy, but the humorously monotonous questions coupled with free-wheeling illustrations by Keane set a quick pace with comical results. At 60 pages, the book has room to follow this thread back to the diabolical bully’s childhood. Most of the answers go beyond a child’s understanding—parental entertainment between the howl of the monosyllabic chorus. It is the digital artwork, which is reminiscent of Quentin Blake’s, that creates a joyful undercurrent of rebellion with bold and loose brush strokes, patches of color, and expressive faces. The illustrations harken to a previous era save for the thoroughly liberated Asian child speaking truth to power.
A funny David-versus-Goliath story with a one-word question serving as the slingshot. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4521-6863-0
Page Count: 60
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Readers are likely to love it to the moon and back.
Little Nutbrown Hare ventures out into the wide world and comes back with a new companion in this sequel to Guess How Much I Love You (1994).
Big Nutbrown Hare is too busy, so after asking permission, Little Nutbrown Hare scampers off over the rolling meadow to play by himself. After discovering that neither his shadow nor his reflection make satisfactory playmates (“You’re only another me!”), Little Nutbrown comes to Cloudy Mountain…and meets “Someone real!” It’s a white bunny who introduces herself as Tipps. But a wonderful round of digging and building and chasing about reaches an unexpected end with a game of hide-and-seek, because both hares hide! After waiting a long time to be found, Little Nutbrown Hare hops on home in disappointment, wondering whether he’ll ever see Tipps again. As it turns out, it doesn’t take long to find out, since she has followed him. “Now, where on earth did she come from?” wonders Big Nutbrown. “Her name is Tipps,” Little Nutbrown proudly replies, “and she’s my friend.” Jeram’s spacious, pale-toned, naturalistic outdoor scenes create a properly idyllic setting for this cozy development in a tender child-caregiver relationship—which hasn’t lost a bit of its appealing intimacy in the more than 25 years since its first appearance. As in the first, Big Nutbrown Hare is ungendered, facilitating pleasingly flexible readings.
Readers are likely to love it to the moon and back. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 29, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1747-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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