bookshelf

LITTLE SOCK

Name: LITTLE SOCK
Author: Kia Heise
ISBN: 978-1-53411-005-2

by Kia Heise & Christopher D. Park ; illustrated by Christopher D. Park ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 15, 2019

The tunnel bit is clever, but it’s not enough on its own to pull this sketchy outing from the drawer.

bookshelf

Weary of routine, a sock escapes to discover a wider (sock) world.

Little Sock lives in a drawer of identical loose socks, never has a mate even when taken out, and, according to the narrative, is improbably worn and washed every day. Venturing into a scary secret tunnel at the back of the clothes dryer, Little Sock finds himself in Sock City…which is just like a regular city except that it’s populated by socks. Readers who think “Aha! So that’s where lost socks go!” are doing better than the authors, who not only never make that claim, but are evidently so in love with their metaphor that they never trouble with constructing either a credible backstory or an actual plotline. Hardly does Little Sock arrive in Sock City than, without transition, he’s back where he started, looking forward to bringing a friend on future visits. Along with faces and pipestem limbs, the socks of Sock City all sport different colors or patterns in Park’s bright cartoon illustrations and are also varied in size and shape. Even the ones that pose in pairs are mismatched—a vision of diversity far removed from Little Sock’s monocolored community. Maybe that contrast is the intended point here? Nonetheless, next to the sock-themed exploits of Jennifer Sattler’s One Red Sock (2019) or C.K. Smouha and Eleonora Marton’s Sock Story (2019), there’s less here than meets the eye.

The tunnel bit is clever, but it’s not enough on its own to pull this sketchy outing from the drawer. (Picture book. 5-7)

Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-53411-005-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press

Review Posted Online: June 15, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE SOCK MAKES A FRIEND
by Kia Heise & Christopher D. Park ; illustrated by Christopher D. Park

bookshelf

PUG BLASTS OFF

From the Diary of a Pug series , Vol. 1

by Sonia Sander & Kyla May ; illustrated by Kyla May ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2019

Totes adorbs.

bookshelf

A cuddly, squishy pug’s puggy-wuggy diary.

Equipped with both #pugunicorn and #pughotdog outfits, pug Baron von Bubbles (aka Bub) is the kind of dog that always dresses to impress. Bub also makes lots of memorable faces, such as the “Hey, you’re not the boss of me!” expression aimed at Duchess, the snooty pink house cat. Some of Bub’s favorite things include skateboarding, a favorite teddy, and eating peanut butter. Bub also loves Bella, who adopted Bub from a fair—it was “love at first sniff.” Together, Bub and Bella do a lot of arts and crafts. Their latest project: entering Bella’s school’s inventor challenge by making a super-duper awesome rocket. But, when the pesky neighborhood squirrel, Nutz, makes off with Bub’s bear, Bub accidentally ruins their project. How will they win the contest? More importantly, how will Bella ever forgive him? May’s cutesy, full-color cartoon art sets the tone for this pug-tastic romp for the new-to–chapter-books crowd. Emojilike faces accentuate Bub’s already expressive character design. Bub’s infectious first-person narration pushes the silly factor off the charts. In addition to creating the look and feel of a diary, the lined paper helps readers follow the eight-chapter story. Most pages have fewer than five sentences, often broken into smaller sections. Additional text appears in color-coded speech bubbles. Bella presents white.

Totes adorbs. (Fiction. 5-7)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-338-53003-2

Page Count: 80

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

bookshelf

TINY T. REX AND THE IMPOSSIBLE HUG

From the Tiny T. Rex series

by Jonathan Stutzman ; illustrated by Jay Fleck ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2019

Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back.

bookshelf

With such short arms, how can Tiny T. Rex give a sad friend a hug?

Fleck goes for cute in the simple, minimally detailed illustrations, drawing the diminutive theropod with a chubby turquoise body and little nubs for limbs under a massive, squared-off head. Impelled by the sight of stegosaurian buddy Pointy looking glum, little Tiny sets out to attempt the seemingly impossible, a comforting hug. Having made the rounds seeking advice—the dino’s pea-green dad recommends math; purple, New Age aunt offers cucumber juice (“That is disgusting”); red mom tells him that it’s OK not to be able to hug (“You are tiny, but your heart is big!”), and blue and yellow older sibs suggest practice—Tiny takes up the last as the most immediately useful notion. Unfortunately, the “tree” the little reptile tries to hug turns out to be a pterodactyl’s leg. “Now I am falling,” Tiny notes in the consistently self-referential narrative. “I should not have let go.” Fortunately, Tiny lands on Pointy’s head, and the proclamation that though Rexes’ hugs may be tiny, “I will do my very best because you are my very best friend” proves just the mood-lightening ticket. “Thank you, Tiny. That was the biggest hug ever.” Young audiences always find the “clueless grown-ups” trope a knee-slapper, the overall tone never turns preachy, and Tiny’s instinctive kindness definitely puts him at (gentle) odds with the dinky dino star of Bob Shea’s Dinosaur Vs. series.

Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back. (Picture book. 5-7)