A solid but unexceptional rhyming story about conquering one’s nighttime fears.
In a surreal dreamscape filled with colorful monsters, a child’s initial fright turns to whimsy upon realizing they are in control of their own destiny.
A pajama-clad child and T. Rex sidekick suddenly appear in a dark, foreboding landscape, watched by eyes hidden among the plants. But as monsters and fairies emerge, so does a…Harley Davidson? The child-narrator quickly understands that this is just a dream, and in rhyming couplets, the story turns fanciful as the child starts to boss the monsters around. Soon, they are working on a Hollywood-style movie with the monsters as the cast and crew, the child as director, and dino as assistant. Finally, they collapse in a tired heap, leaving the child back in bed, snuggling with the stuffed dino. It takes a few pages for the poetry to find its stride, as if the frightening first spreads were not part of the text proper. Staub also initially plays with language, delaying the rhyme with a page turn or pre-empting an obvious rhyme with a surprise word. However, these fillips are more distracting than clever, and it isn’t until the poetry (and the protagonist’s confidence) finds its stride that the book begins to charm. Illustrator Liu’s digital art looks hand-drawn, with a childlike sense of play that conveys the humor. The child has light skin and straight, black hair cut in a pageboy.
A solid but unexceptional rhyming story about conquering one’s nighttime fears. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-59078-930-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Nov. 25, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This seemingly simple tale packs a satisfying emotional punch. Scarily good! (Picture book. 4-7)
Monster lives in Cutesville, where he feels his googly eyes make him unlovable, especially compared to all the “cute, fluffy” kittens, puppies and bunnies. He goes off to find someone who will appreciate him just the way he is…with funny and heartwarming results.
A red, scraggly, pointy-eared, arm-dragging monster with a pronounced underbite clutches his monster doll to one side of his chest, exposing a purplish blue heart on the other. His oversized eyes express his loneliness. Bright could not have created a more sympathetic and adorable character. But she further impresses with the telling of this poor chap’s journey. Since Monster is not the “moping-around sort,” he strikes out on his own to find someone who will love him. “He look[s] high” from on top of a hill, and “he look[s] low” at the bottom of the same hill. The page turn reveals a rolling (and labeled) tumbleweed on a flat stretch. Here “he look[s] middle-ish.” Careful pacing combines with dramatic design and the deadpan text to make this sad search a very funny one. When it gets dark and scary, he decides to head back home. A bus’s headlights shine on his bent figure. All seems hopeless—until the next page surprises, with a smiling, orange monster with long eyelashes and a pink heart on her chest depicted at the wheel. And “in the blink of a googly eye / everything change[s].”
This seemingly simple tale packs a satisfying emotional punch. Scarily good! (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Dec. 31, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-374-34646-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2013
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