With octopus escape-artist abilities recently in the news, this is a timely title about a perennially appealing sea creature.
Using a wide range of survival techniques, a common octopus escapes from her predators and finds her dinner.
This lightly fictionalized story demonstrates some of an octopus's unusual adaptations: a flexible, boneless body that can be squeezed into a small hiding place; a siphon that squirts ink to cloud the water or a jet of water for a fast getaway; the ability to leave a limb behind; and a knack for changing color and texture for camouflage. The lyrical text has appealing alliteration and repetition; it reads aloud smoothly. Occasionally, supplemental information appears in smaller type. The predator-prey concept provides sufficient suspense to carry readers and listeners along as Octopus avoids a sea turtle, eel, shark, grouper, and gull before she finds her meal. The information about her predators and her prey—shrimp, fish, snails, a crab, and clams—is accurate and nicely shows her place in the food chain. Angus’ collage-style illustrations have a watery look appropriate to her environment. The double-page spread that discusses camouflage is particularly effective, with the octopus visible only under a bright light. Like other books from this publisher, this includes extensive backmatter for both children and adults, and additional activities and information are available on the publisher's website.
With octopus escape-artist abilities recently in the news, this is a timely title about a perennially appealing sea creature. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58469-577-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dawn Publications
Review Posted Online: June 27, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
A loving ode to libraries, more needed than ever in a world of increasing book bans.
The magic of a public library, revealed.
Piper Waterstone, a plump little chipmunk with a voracious appetite for reading, never lets her books out of her sight. They are so special to her that she can’t bear to part with them, so instead, she carries them with her wherever she goes. As her collection grows, however, transporting it becomes increasingly difficult. One rainy afternoon, her bike wobbles, and her wagon full of books spills onto the wet street. They get soaked. Piper is devastated. A gentle mole sees her plight and ushers her into the closest building—which happens to be the library. Piper looks up, mouth agape and paws clasped in wonder. This building is full of books! A glow from the majestic windows (or possibly the magic) envelops her and the mole librarian as they face the endless bookshelves. If Piper is going to join the library, she needs to learn to share the books that she loves so dearly. Is that a commitment she is willing to make? Deep, warm tones, with bright spots of gleaming lamps, wrap the space in comfort and coziness, while the anthropomorphized animals have a sweetly old-fashioned air. Notably, there’s nary an electronic device in sight.
A loving ode to libraries, more needed than ever in a world of increasing book bans. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2024
ISBN: 9780316512749
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
An unusual, tongue-in-cheek aid to getting children to eat a disliked food—even the dreaded carrot
A charming little French snail takes center stage as it entices a child to share a meal.
It’s hard to imagine an escargot heading toward a salad as destined to be anything other than part of the dish, but this engaging snail upends convention. Escargot peeks around the edge of the front endpapers and invites readers to share the experience of “traveling to the salad at the end of this book.” Close-ups of the big-eyed protagonist dressed in a jaunty blue-and-white striped shirt, red neckerchief, and black beret dominate the book. The last pages reveal the light-skinned child from whose visual perspective the story unfolds. Soft-edged, cartoonish illustrations in watercolor humorously emphasize Escargot’s confident worldview. The first-person text encourages reading aloud with a French accent: “Oh la la!...Escargot is magnifique! You can kiss me if you want.” Desperate to be readers’ favorite animal (he doesn’t seem to be for anybody else), Escargot even manages to explain away the slime as “shimmery trails of…shimmery stuff.” As Escargot slides past quiche and brie, the race is on to see who can reach the salad—and that carrot—first.
An unusual, tongue-in-cheek aid to getting children to eat a disliked food—even the dreaded carrot (. (Picture Book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-374-30281-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
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