A delicious outing for one and all.
Back for a fourth adventure, this smart cookie cavorts across the zoo, where many animals are ready for a nibble.
The Gingerbread Man’s class is on a field trip. The teacher has prepared a scavenger hunt of riddles to lead them to many different animals in the zoo. The first one poses: “I’m spotted. I’m gentle. / I’m tall as a tree. A branch full of leaves is / the best snack for me. / I have a new baby, / and she is my calf.” “AH-HA!” the class shouts; the answer is…(dramatic page turn included)…“GIRAFFE!” But just when the Gingerbread Man is about to read the next clue, the giraffe’s long tongue curls around him and lifts him up for a quick munch. The class goes on ahead, leaving the cookie in peril. Luckily he escapes, but the class is long gone. He must answer the rest of the riddles in order to find them. Alas, Murray only includes two more full riddles for readers to guess (plus an extra, non–zoo-related one at the end), but he does mention the many animals that the Gingerbread Man finds…even a certain sly fox, which the cookie instinctively knows to avoid. Lowery has always been careful to incorporate many races and ethnicities; this adventure does not stray from that practice.
A delicious outing for one and all. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-16867-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Willems’ formula is still a winner.
The pigeon is back, and he is filthy!
Readers haven’t seen the pigeon for a couple of years, not since The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? (2012), and apparently he hasn’t bathed in all that time. Per the usual routine, the bus driver (clad in shower cap and bathrobe) opens the story by asking readers to help convince the pigeon to take a bath. Though he’s covered in grime, the obstreperous bird predictably resists. He glares at readers and suggests that maybe they need baths. With the turn of the page, Willems anticipates readers’ energetic denials: The pigeon demands, “YEAH! When was the last time YOU had a bath?!” Another beat allows children to supply the answer. “Oh.” A trio of flies that find him repulsive (“P.U.!”) convinces him it’s time. One spread with 29 separate panels depicts the pigeon adjusting the bath (“Too wet!…Too cold.…Too reflective”) before the page turn reveals him jumping in with a spread-filling “SPLASH!” Readers accustomed to the pigeon formula will note that here the story breaks from its normal rhythms; instead of throwing a tantrum, the pigeon discovers what readers already know: “This is FUN!” All the elements are in place, including page backgrounds that modulate from dirty browns to fresh, clean colors and endpapers that bookend the story (including a very funny turnabout for the duckling, here a rubber bath toy).
Willems’ formula is still a winner. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9087-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A testament to the universality of love.
An expanded explanation of love in both English and Spanish.
Several animal personalities pose the question, “What is love?” and in a series of lift-the-flap responses present various emotional scenarios. Little Elephant asks Spider, “Is it the joy of having you around?” Spider asks, “Is it the way you lift me when I’m down?” Each page corresponds to a flap that reveals one of a multitude of feelings love can evoke in either an English or Spanish rhyme, which are not direct translations of each other. An interspersed refrain notes, “Amor for the Spanish, / and love en inglés. / Love in any language / always means the same.” A palette of pastels and purple and pink hues dominate as hearts abound on each page, surrounding the characters, who are adorable though on the overly sweet side. The characters are from the bilingual preschool series Canticos, though it will work even among those without knowledge of the show. Children more fluent in Spanish will be better able to appreciate this, and those familiar with the show will recognize the signature characters, including “Los Pollitos” (Little Chickies). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A testament to the universality of love. (Board book. 3-6)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-945635-72-4
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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