A little boy’s imaginary underwater submarine adventure in short, descriptive verse. Diving deeper and deeper, the boy encounters a bright, amazingly colorful ocean full of traditional and different sea life, all the while defining the unique features of each creature. “Diving with a silky seal / Darting by a dancing eel / Peering through a kelpy haze / at rainbow fish and manta rays.” Ashman includes new words and exotic fish: “Skimming over sneaky dabs / Hiding from the horseshoe crabs” and “Gliding through the wavy grass, / glimpse a busy cleaner wrasse.” When our explorer approaches danger by the confrontation of a shark, he reverses his sub and speedily returns through his previous subaqueous route, safely surfacing the waters of his toy-filled bathtub. Poetic text is lively with enough alliteration to encourage repeated recitation. Acrylic paintings in large, aquatic blues and greens accompany the multicolored animated sea creatures surrounding the youngster’s orange submarine. An amusing and equally enlightening companion to Ashman’s previous Castles, Caves, and Honeycombs (2001). (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: May 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-15-202658-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2003
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Parent-child bonding has never looked cozier, as a huge brown Papa bear and a very small cub spend quality time together from dawn till dusk in a leafy forest. The cub takes the narrative lead: “My daddy wakes me. My daddy feeds me,” and so on, until after “My daddy cuddles me” the pair drowse to the simple declaration, “I love my daddy.” Braun depicts hazy-edged figures and settings in long brushstrokes of golden toned browns and yellows, on a bottom layer of cool, green, flower-strewn grass. In a companion volume, I Love My Mommy (ISBN: 0-06-054310-8), he uses a similar arc and some of the same lines, but includes more abstract observations—“My mommy works really hard,” “My mommy is always there for me”—and depicts a different animal pair on each spread. Both make perfect fare for an intimate shared reading, though parents may come away feeling a little pressured by the high expectations. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-06-054311-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2004
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This sweet story of first-time pet ownership is sure to appeal to young animal lovers of all kinds and especially to feline...
McQuinn and Beardshaw’s (Leo Can Swim, 2016, etc.) adorable, black preschool heroine, Lola, is back for another turn.
Lola loves cats, as is evident by her bedroom full of plush cat dolls and feline artwork, but what Lola desires most of all is a real-life cat to call her own. Mommy is hesitant, warning that “looking after a cat is a lot of work,” but when Lola proves she is up to the task, Mommy relents and accompanies Lola to the animal shelter to select a kitten to rescue. “Before Lola can decide, one little cat chooses her!” Many readers will surely appreciate the plotline of shelter-animal pet adoption. Once their home is prepared, Lola and Mommy bring the kitten home, where Lola dubs her Makeda after “an African queen.” Throughout, Beardshaw’s signature bright acrylic illustrations with soft edges pop with youthful exuberance. Details such as Lola’s simple care chart may even serve as inspiration for other young aspiring pet owners. The simple text makes this a suitable story for sharing one-on-one or in a small group or for beginning readers to pursue independently.
This sweet story of first-time pet ownership is sure to appeal to young animal lovers of all kinds and especially to feline fanciers. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Feb. 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-58089-736-5
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
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