Hot as the “bully” topic may be, this has nothing to offer on it aside from facile wish fulfillment.
Inspired by his dinosaur ancestry, a small chick drives off a wolf and so turns bullies into friends in this bland episode.
Bullies Little Pig, Little Sheep and Little Donkey refuse him entry to the treehouse unless he can prove that he’s “brave and mighty.” A nascent rooster’s crow doesn’t persuade them that he or his family meet their qualifications, and they post a “No Chickens Allowed” sign on their tree. Little Chick pesters his dad into helping him dig up an “ancient ancestor” who turns out to be T. Rex. Proclaiming “I AM CHICK-O-SAURUS REX!” in a full-spread bellow, Little Chick races back to the tree with a giant bone, arriving just in time to send a startled wolf scooting off. Huzzah. After a general chorus of “For He’s a Mighty Brave Chicken,” the erstwhile bullies throw the treehouse open to all the farm animals. The thick-lined, very simple cartoon illustrations have just about as much nuance as the plotline.
Hot as the “bully” topic may be, this has nothing to offer on it aside from facile wish fulfillment. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: July 23, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4424-5186-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 9, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
Grandma Beaver and her grandkit, Bella, share a special bond and a family tradition.
When Bella is born, her grandmother sews a bag that she calls a blessing bag. Over the years, Grandma Beaver places special rocks into the bag as gifts. On the rocks, she writes words that come to have meaning in her granddaughter’s life: love, dedication, honesty, beauty, kindness and courage. After the addition of each stone, Bella learns a lesson about the word as she experiences an appreciation for that quality in her own life. As the wordy story progresses, the illustrations show an aging and more fragile grandmother, and Bella learns what courage is when Grandma Beaver dies. The birth of Bella’s brother allows her to repeat the beloved custom and remember her grandmother at the same time. The gentle illustrations are primarily rendered in earthy browns and greens, adding reds and pinks when Bella tells a lie or confesses to Mama that she has not truly lived up to her grandmother’s expectations. Each spread leaves little to the reader’s imagination, as every nuance of text is expressed in smiling suns, flying butterflies and pensive owls. Schools embracing character education often choose a "word of the year," and this offering will dovetail nicely there. Clearly didactic and unabashedly sentimental, though undeniably well-meant. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-897476-61-1
Page Count: 30
Publisher: Simply Read
Review Posted Online: Aug. 14, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
Engaging, sitcom-style humor based on personality differences and securely attuned to the intended audience.
A practical alligator and her more excitable husband plan a camping trip in this slightly reformatted chapter taken from Meet Mr. and Mrs. Green (2002).
“We need food and water,” proposes Mrs. Green. “Like chocolate bars and marshmallows,” responds Mr. Green. “And soda pop!” Though Mr. Green’s enthusiasm flags when Mrs. Green mentions a map—“There could be dark, mysterious woods, strange, eerie sounds, spooky, glowing eyes, sharp, pointy teeth, and mosquitoes!”—he brightens again when the trek ends in their own backyard. Distinguished by a string of pearls (for her, unsurprisingly) and a necktie (for him, ditto), the otherwise identical bright green couple poses amid a clutter of comfy domestic details in Baker’s small but open-edged cartoon illustrations. Neither here nor in the likewise republished Cookies (from On the Go with Mr. and Mrs. Green, 2006) have either the art or the page design been significantly altered, but as single episodes, the stories may be less intimidating to newly independent readers than the original collections.
Engaging, sitcom-style humor based on personality differences and securely attuned to the intended audience. (Early reader. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-547-74961-7
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sandpiper
Review Posted Online: July 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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