Kids will eat this up, no matter the season.
Will Jingles the cat’s yuletide mischief ruin Christmas for everyone?
In this lengthy picture book with a diminutive trim size, a family deals with their new kitten’s shenanigans at Christmastime. Before Jingles eats Christmas (as foretold by the title), he breaks it by destroying decorations, tearing wrapping paper off gifts, and then knocking over the tree. While this is upsetting (especially for little Rose), the family rallies and carries on with their day, and they’re excited to go get Grandma and bring her to their house for a special turkey dinner. But then, in the titular twist that will remind fans of the film A Christmas Story of the fate that befalls little Ralphie’s family’s holiday meal, Jingles sneaks to the kitchen while the family is out and gobbles up the turkey, leaving a huge mess. These feline hijinks are met with patience after Rose’s initial wail, but Jingles disappears in disgrace while everyone cleans up. Sharp-eyed readers will see that he’s stowed away in Grandma’s bag, but the family frets while he’s missing. A joyful reunion the next day affirms their unconditional love for their naughty kitten. Throughout, the tightly written, humorous text is enhanced by Docherty’s exuberant grayscale illustrations with Christmassy red embellishments. The family is an interracial one; Mom appears black, Dad and Grandma white, and the three children, Alex, Lily, and Rose, biracial.
Kids will eat this up, no matter the season. (Picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: Oct. 9, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7624-6475-3
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Running Press Kids
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
Charming.
An assortment of unusual characters form friendships and help each other become their best selves.
Mr. and Mrs. Tupper, who live at Number 3 Ramshorn Drive, are antiquarians. Their daughter, Jillian, loves and cares for a plant named Ivy, who has “three speckles on each leaf and three letters in her name.” Toasty, the grumpy goldfish, lives in an octagonal tank and wishes he were Jillian’s favorite; when Arthur the spider arrives inside an antique desk, he brings wisdom and insight. Ollie the violet plant, Louise the bee, and Sunny the canary each arrive with their own quirks and problems to solve. Each character has a distinct personality and perspective; sometimes they clash, but more often they learn to empathize, see each other’s points of view, and work to help one another. They also help the Tupper family with bills and a burglar. The Fan brothers’ soft-edged, old-fashioned, black-and-white illustrations depict Toasty and Arthur with tiny hats; Ivy and Ollie have facial expressions on their plant pots. The Tuppers have paper-white skin and dark hair. The story comes together like a recipe: Simple ingredients combine, transform, and rise into something wonderful. In its matter-of-fact wisdom, rich vocabulary (often defined within the text), hint of magic, and empathetic nonhuman characters who solve problems in creative ways, this delightful work is reminiscent of Ferris by Kate DiCamillo, Our Friend Hedgehog by Lauren Castillo, and Ivy Lost and Found by Cynthia Lord and Stephanie Graegin.
Charming. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: May 27, 2025
ISBN: 9781665942485
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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