A clever tale packed with wry wit and charming illustrations.
Princess Cora, tired of her young life as a queen-in-training, asks her fairy godmother for a pet—with unexpected results.
When Princess Cora was born, the King and Queen (both white, like their daughter) exclaim over her perfection. But the realization that Cora will someday be queen turns their delight into an obsessive diligence in training Cora in dull topics punctuated by tedious exercise. Add the three-baths-a-day regime that her nanny (also white) insists on, and Cora is now one unhappy princess. Denied a pet dog, Cora writes an appeal to her fairy godmother, and the next morning finds a box at the foot of her bed containing a large crocodile. Schlitz’s dry humor is on gleeful display as the crocodile, switching places with Cora (so she can have a day off), evens the score on her behalf with the King, Queen, and nanny. The crocodile’s antics are juxtaposed against Cora’s pastoral day and enhanced by Floca’s ink, watercolor, and gouache illustrations, which superbly amplify the story’s emotional arc. All ends happily. And the crocodile? He may or may not be living in the lily pond, but Princess Cora tosses in cream puffs (the croc’s favorite thing besides chewing on people) whenever she walks her new pet dog, just in case he is.
A clever tale packed with wry wit and charming illustrations. (Illustrated fantasy. 6-9)Pub Date: March 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-7636-4822-0
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
There is value in escaping to a fairyland with magical creatures and a happy ending, and readers will relish this story in...
Round little Ivy learns from her kindhearted (if a bit disorganized) grandmother that caring for the sick and injured brings great rewards.
In the fairyland town of Broomsweep, every garden is tidy and every front porch is spotless, except at Grandmother Meg’s cottage. But Grandmother is famous for taking care of injured and sick animals. Ivy helps her nurse a sneezing chipmunk, a sad fox, and a three-legged griffin. When the new queen announces a contest to select the best town in the land, the villagers (especially the mayor's wife, Mistress Peevish) become alarmed. How could they be selected the best town with all these sick and dirty creatures destroying the neighborhood? Matters become worse when a dragon seeks Meg’s care. But the villain is not a fire-breathing dragon—it is the mayor’s wife, whose dog wriggles away from her grasp, to be rescued, of course, by one of Grandmother’s patients. With steady pacing, Coville gives readers a pixie’s view of the action, fluttering close enough to hear the characters’ conversations; Kaspar’s occasional pencil sketches bring warmth and compassion to the characters. White Ivy is a gentle heroine, converting a young bully into an ally.
There is value in escaping to a fairyland with magical creatures and a happy ending, and readers will relish this story in which the bullies are beaten by kindness and compassion, even if it gets a little messy. (Fantasy. 6-9)Pub Date: March 7, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-553-53975-2
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Sure to please newly independent readers who are pussycat pals.
What is this “school” place little humans go to? Don’t they realize their feline owners are more important?
The erstwhile stray cat Oliver, formerly known as Mr. Independent (My Pet Human, 2015), can’t get his pet human girl, Freckles, to understand that she should stay home and pay attention to him rather than go to school, so he tags along by hiding in her backpack. Oliver uses that cat-patented big-eyed “Look” to charm the adult humans at school, but he ends up having to stay with Mrs. Sinclair, the adviser of the Fur-ever Friends Club…and that leads to Freckles’ joining the club. This has two unpleasant outcomes: Freckles fosters a kitten who has no respect for Oliver’s boundaries, and both Oliver and the kitten must participate in a talent-show fundraiser for a local shelter. Too many treats and hot lights spell disaster at the talent show for Oliver, but all works out for the best in the end. Surovec’s second tale of Oliver and his pet human will entertain fans of the first. Large text, ample black-and-white cartoon illustrations, and plenty of dialogue in talk bubbles will keep the pages turning in this tale of feline friendship. (In the cartoons, all human characters have paper-white skin, but there are variations in hair color and texture.)
Sure to please newly independent readers who are pussycat pals. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 6-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62672-074-9
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
