WHIMSICAL KIMSICLE AND THE MAILBOX MIX-UP

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WHIMSICAL KIMSICLE AND THE MAILBOX MIX-UP

Name: WHIMSICAL KIMSICLE AND THE MAILBOX MIX-UP
Author: Kim Ades

by Kim Ades & Allan Friedman ; illustrated by Gavriella Reiss ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A

Distractions and detours are part of the fun in this upbeat (and yes, whimsical) children’s book.

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Awards & Accolades

Our Verdict

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Ten-year-old social butterfly Whimsical Kimsicle must gather all her focus to complete an important errand in this children’s book.

When Whimsical Kimsicle’s mother tasks her with delivering two envelopes to two destinations, she ecstatically jumps at the chance to go into town and visit all her good friends. And although she knows she’s on a time-sensitive errand, Whimsical Kimsicle gets continually distracted on her way to the mailbox by teachers, friends, and even chocolate bars. She’s pleased to finally deliver the first of the letters, until she realizes her grave mistake: She dropped the wrong envelope into the mailbox! Whimsical Kimsicle then frantically brainstorms solutions to undo her mailing mix-up, but without much luck. Thankfully, she doesn’t have to work alone for long; her friends Sally and Wendy come to the rescue. Can Whimsical Kimsicle finish her postal task and return home? The book uses bright, cartoonish illustrations to bring its characters to life—especially Whimsical Kimsicle herself, whose exaggerated expressions complement the story’s wacky twists and turns. The story is written in a simple rhyme scheme, adding an element of silliness and a bouncy rhythm that would make this a great book for storytime. A few rhymes create some awkward or unnatural wording, but nothing is too jarring. Overall, Ades and Friedman successfully deliver a fun story with an eccentric and lovable main character.

Distractions and detours are part of the fun in this upbeat (and yes, whimsical) children’s book.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: FriesenPress

Review Posted Online: May 27, 2026

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)