Wit, humor and a resourceful heroine come together in an irresistible folk tale for early readers and young listeners to...
Who’s afraid of a big bad bear?
This new addition to the fresh, new Animal Stories early reader series presents young readers with another folkloric delight. When young Masha enters a Russian forest to gather berries for her hungry brothers and sisters, she goes a little too far and gets very, very lost. A seemingly helpful bear offers to take her home, but unfortunately, he means to his home! Trapped in a cave and forced to sweep the floor and make pies, the very resourceful Masha must devise a plan to outsmart the bear and find her way back to her family. An excellent choice for early readers with some confidence, this selection also makes a fine read-aloud, though a bit of background on the tale would add to the whole experience. Stylized, colorful illustrations brim with appeal, and occasional speech bubbles echo the story’s gentle humor. Controlled vocabulary, with just enough repetition to help young readers along, blends nicely here with the accessible plot, pitch-perfect timing, and clever, satisfying ending. Will Masha manage to return to her family? Will the bear have to learn to bake his own pies? Tune in to this cheery, engaging tale to find out!
Wit, humor and a resourceful heroine come together in an irresistible folk tale for early readers and young listeners to savor. (Early reader/folk tale. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-84686-874-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2013
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Emergent readers will like the humor in little Pip’s pointed requests, and more engaging adventures for Otto and Pip will be...
In his third beginning reader about Otto the robot, Milgrim (See Otto, 2002, etc.) introduces another new friend for Otto, a little mouse named Pip.
The simple plot involves a large balloon that Otto kindly shares with Pip after the mouse has a rather funny pointing attack. (Pip seems to be in that I-point-and-I-want-it phase common with one-year-olds.) The big purple balloon is large enough to carry Pip up and away over the clouds, until Pip runs into Zee the bee. (“Oops, there goes Pip.”) Otto flies a plane up to rescue Pip (“Hurry, Otto, Hurry”), but they crash (and splash) in front of some hippos with another big balloon, and the story ends as it begins, with a droll “See Pip point.” Milgrim again succeeds in the difficult challenge of creating a real, funny story with just a few simple words. His illustrations utilize lots of motion and basic geometric shapes with heavy black outlines, all against pastel backgrounds with text set in an extra-large typeface.
Emergent readers will like the humor in little Pip’s pointed requests, and more engaging adventures for Otto and Pip will be welcome additions to the limited selection of funny stories for children just beginning to read. (Easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-689-85116-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2003
An entertaining, if light, addition to the growing shelf of celebrity-authored picture books.
Actor and author Witherspoon makes her picture-book debut.
Betty, a light-skinned, bespectacled child with blond pigtails, was born busy. Constantly in motion, Betty builds big block towers, cartwheels around the house (underfoot, of course), and plays with the family’s “fantabulous” dog, Frank, who is stinky and dirty. That leads to a big, busy, bright idea that, predictably, caroms toward calamity yet drags along enough hilarity to be entertaining. With a little help from best friend Mae (light-skinned with dark hair), the catastrophe turns into a lucrative dog-washing business. Busy Betty is once again ready to rush off to the next big thing. Yan uses vivid, pastel colors for a spread of a group of diverse kids bringing their dogs to be washed, helping out, and having fun, while the grown-ups are muted and relegated to the background. Extreme angles in several of the illustrations effectively convey a sense of perpetual motion and heighten the story’s tension, drawing readers in. An especially effective, glitter-strewn spread portrays Frank looming large and seemingly running off the page while Betty looks on, stricken at the ensuing mess. Though it’s a familiar and easily resolved story, Witherspoon’s rollicking text never holds back, replete with amusing phrases such as “sweet cinnamon biscuits,” “bouncing biscuits,” and “busted biscuits.” As Betty says, “Being busy is a great way to be.” Young readers are sure to agree. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An entertaining, if light, addition to the growing shelf of celebrity-authored picture books. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-46588-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: July 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2022
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BOOK REVIEW
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