The conclusion kids might draw? Going to school isn’t nearly as bad as being a dog.
“Be careful what you wish for” is just one of the messages in this humorous book about switching places.
Charlie is tired of school and all the letter practice and picture drawing. His dog, Norman, doesn’t have to go to school. Charlie wishes on a star to be a dog, and the next morning, he and Norman have switched places. While the dog rushes off to school to enjoy writing, playing kickball and making clay sculptures, Charlie lies back, relishing the opportunity to get some extra sleep and watch the leaves fall. But as the week goes on, both Norman and Charlie begin to see the drawbacks of the new arrangement. Norman gets in trouble for his chewing habit and must listen to a story about cats. Charlie drinks out of the toilet and gets locked outside in the cold. One wish-upon-a-star later, Charlie couldn’t be happier to wake up in his own bed and be going back to school. Biggs’ illustrations, done in a bright palette of aqua, olive, purple, mustard, red and orange, are hysterical, as the two swap places but not bodies: The boy acts like a dog and vice versa. And while the people’s faces manage to convey emotion with just a tiny mouth and dot eyes, Norman’s droll expression never changes, adding to the farcical nature of the tale.
The conclusion kids might draw? Going to school isn’t nearly as bad as being a dog. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 17, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7868-5493-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader!
Fun with friends makes for a great day.
Norbit, a salmon-colored worm with a pink kerchief, joyfully greets the day and everyone he encounters. “Hello, friends! It’s time for fun with the sun! Let’s play!” He and his menagerie of forest pals—including the sun, who grows limbs and descends from the sky—exuberantly engage in various forms of physical activity such as jumping, going down a slide, spinning around, and watching the clouds go by. Young readers will readily relate, as these are games that most children are familiar with. As day turns to night, Norbit says farewell to Sun and welcomes Moon with an invitation to continue the fun. Watkins has created a vivid world of movement and merriment. Her illustrations feature bright bursts of color that match the energy of the text, with most sentences ending in an exclamation point. The author/illustrator incorporates many elements that make for an ideal early-reading experience (despite the use of a contraction or two): art free from clutter, text consisting of words with only one or two syllables, and repetition and recurring bits, such as a continued game of hide-and-seek with Sun. Inspired by never-before-seen sketches from the Dr. Seuss Collection archives at the University of California San Diego, this is the first title for Seuss Studios, a new imprint for original stories from “emerging authors and illustrators” who “honor Seuss’s hallmark spirit of creativity and imagination.”
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader! (author's note) (Early reader. 5-8)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9780593646212
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Seuss Studios
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor
Having surveyed worms, spiders, flies, and head lice, Gravel continues her Disgusting Critters series with a quick hop through toad fact and fancy.
The facts are briefly presented in a hand-lettered–style typeface frequently interrupted by visually emphatic interjections (“TOXIN,” “PREY,” “EWWW!”). These are, as usual, paired to simply drawn cartoons with comments and punch lines in dialogue balloons. After casting glances at the common South American ancestor of frogs and toads, and at such exotic species as the Emei mustache toad (“Hey ladies!”), Gravel focuses on the common toad, Bufo bufo. Using feminine pronouns throughout, she describes diet and egg-laying, defense mechanisms, “warts,” development from tadpole to adult, and of course how toads shed and eat their skins. Noting that global warming and habitat destruction have rendered some species endangered or extinct, she closes with a plea and, harking back to those South American origins, an image of an outsized toad, arm in arm with a dark-skinned lad (in a track suit), waving goodbye: “Hasta la vista!”
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor . (Informational picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-77049-667-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2016
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