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SAM AND CHARLIE (AND SAM TOO) RETURN!

Name: SAM AND CHARLIE (AND SAM TOO) RETURN!
Author: Leslie Kimmelman
ISBN: 978-0-8075-7215-3

by Leslie Kimmelman ; illustrated by William Owl ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2014

If only the stories were as involving as the pictures around them. (Early reader. 5-8)

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This is a collection of Jewish stories that leaves out the stories.

Reading this book feels a lot like listening to a vinyl LP with multiple skips that send listeners abruptly from the middle of one song to the next. Here’s the plot of the first story in the collection: Sam and Charlie shovel their neighbor’s walk. Then they drink hot cocoa. Along the way, they complain about hat hair and accidentally dump snow on each other, but none of these incidents advances the story. In fact, there is no story, just a series of isolated events, like random notes in a recording. Sometimes this leads to a pretty good joke. In one scene, Charlie is following Passover tradition and hunting for a matzo cracker that’s been hidden somewhere in the house. She sits in an armchair to think, and—CRUNCH!—the matzo turns up under the cushion. Much too often, though, the book is genuinely perplexing. Readers may be forgiven for feeling that these scenes could have occurred in any order and made just as much sense. The illustrations are unfailingly gorgeous. Charlie’s hair has more personality than the main characters in other books.

If only the stories were as involving as the pictures around them. (Early reader. 5-8)

Pub Date: March 1, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-8075-7215-3

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Whitman

Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S RELIGIOUS FICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
ALL WHO ARE HUNGRY, COME AND EAT!
by Leslie Kimmelman ; illustrated by Alyssa Russell

- BOOK REVIEW
EVE AND ADAM DISCOVER THE WORLD
by Leslie Kimmelman ; illustrated by Irina Avgustinovich

- BOOK REVIEW
EVE AND ADAM AND THEIR VERY FIRST DAY
by Leslie Kimmelman ; illustrated by Irina Avgustinovich

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CLAYMATES

by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Lauren Eldridge ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 20, 2017

The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted...

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Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.

A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what’s going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a “pig-e-phant” doesn’t come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to “fix [them]selves” on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the “clay mates” is perfectly captured by Petty’s feisty, spot-on dialogue: “This was your idea…and it was a BAD one.” Eldridge’s endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist’s work table to great effect.

The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own . (Picture book. 5-8)

Pub Date: June 20, 2017

ISBN: 978-0-316-30311-8

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: March 28, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ELMORE AND THE BIG CHRISTMAS RESCUE
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Mike Boldt

- BOOK REVIEW
DON'T LOSE MR. CUDDLES
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Mike Boldt

- BOOK REVIEW
MONTY AND THE MUSHROOMS
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Jared Chapman

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HELLO, SUN!

by Lala Watkins ; illustrated by Lala Watkins ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 7, 2025

Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader!

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Fun with friends makes for a great day.

Norbit, a salmon-colored worm with a pink kerchief, joyfully greets the day and everyone he encounters. “Hello, friends! It’s time for fun with the sun! Let’s play!” He and his menagerie of forest pals—including the sun, who grows limbs and descends from the sky—exuberantly engage in various forms of physical activity such as jumping, going down a slide, spinning around, and watching the clouds go by. Young readers will readily relate, as these are games that most children are familiar with. As day turns to night, Norbit says farewell to Sun and welcomes Moon with an invitation to continue the fun. Watkins has created a vivid world of movement and merriment. Her illustrations feature bright bursts of color that match the energy of the text, with most sentences ending in an exclamation point. The author/illustrator incorporates many elements that make for an ideal early-reading experience (despite the use of a contraction or two): art free from clutter, text consisting of words with only one or two syllables, and repetition and recurring bits, such as a continued game of hide-and-seek with Sun. Inspired by never-before-seen sketches from the Dr. Seuss Collection archives at the University of California San Diego, this is the first title for Seuss Studios, a new imprint for original stories from “emerging authors and illustrators” who “honor Seuss’s hallmark spirit of creativity and imagination.”

Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader! (author's note) (Early reader. 5-8)