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HAMLET

THE ALGONQUIN CAT

A charming tale, particularly for fans of the legendary hotel.

Awards & Accolades

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A stray cat wonders if he has what it takes to be the feline-in-residence at the Algonquin Hotel in this illustrated children’s-book sequel.

One day, a scruffy orange tomcat is on the street; the next, he’s the new “Algonquin Cat” at the famed New York City hotel, now that Matilda is retiring. Since 1932, there have been 11 such cats, with the females named Matilda and the males, Hamlet. Matilda shows the new Hamlet how to greet guests and flatter them. But he wonders if it’s all a mistake: “I am clumsy and I snore.” Matilda reminds him that all Algonquin felines were once street cats and recommends drawing courage from the famous Round Table. While snoozing below it, he hears a disembodied voice: “Do not be afraid. It is time to take your place.” Heartened, he confidently steps into his role. Two final pages supply background on the hotel and the Algonquin Cat tradition. Martini (Matilda the Algonquin Cat, 2016) offers a pleasing fable about feeling worthy when good fortune comes one’s way. This outing is less hotel-focused than the previous installment, but it still conveys the Algonquin’s special flavor. Gentle humor nicely balances Hamlet’s moments of anxiety. Mongiardo’s simple but effective tricolor illustrations beautifully convey Hamlet’s personality and the hotel’s appeal.

A charming tale, particularly for fans of the legendary hotel.

Pub Date: Sept. 4, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-944903-47-3

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Roundtree Press

Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S SPRINGTIME

From the Little Blue Truck series

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.

Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.

This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)

Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-544-93809-0

Page Count: 16

Publisher: HMH Books

Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018

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