Liniers continues his run of clever comics for kids, with a fun adventure and panels full of easy-to-follow action....
After a day full of play with her toy fawn, Planet, a little blonde white girl drifts off to sleep—and Planet is off to play for the night.
Once the toy is downstairs, it hears a sound it can’t identify and becomes so frightened it passes out. Coming to, it sees it’s the family dog, a spaniel named Elliot, and though the toy is relieved, the calm doesn’t last long, as Elliot chases Planet and, catching the toy, gives it a playful, vigorous shake. They decide to go to the kitchen for a snack of cookies, where they meet a friendly rat called Bradley, who takes them on a new adventure to capture the biggest cookie they’ve ever seen. After their big adventure, Planet gets a few hours of sleep before they’re up to play again. Liniers has a gift for wordless storytelling through his art-only panels, using muted tones in watercolor under skillfully drawn pen-and-ink lines that create thin outlines and heavy areas of shading. The lettering is distinct and whimsical, and the lines of dialogue are funny, conveying Planet’s personality as patient, kind, and quick-witted. The Spanish-language version, Buenas Noches, Planeta, changes only Planet’s name, and though Liniers is Argentine, the Spanish is not localized to any one dialect, making it an easy inclusion in kids’ libraries and a perfect matched pair for kids who would benefit from the same book in English and Spanish.
Liniers continues his run of clever comics for kids, with a fun adventure and panels full of easy-to-follow action. Delightful. (Graphic fantasy. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943145-20-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: TOON Books & Graphics
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
Here’s hoping there will be a bunch of Baloney in the future.
A new chapter-book series promises tons of fun for everyone.
Baloney the pig couldn’t be happier about starring in his very own book—until pals Peanut D. Horse, Bizz E. Bee, and Krabbit (a crabby rabbit) crash the introduction, leaving him frustrated. Baloney perseveres and goes on to star in several, short comic book–style stories that often break the fourth wall and that always rely on the very different personalities of the characters to deliver humor. Peanut is a Pollyanna and just a bit daffy. Bizz is a sensible, thoughtful bee-ing. Krabbit is so crabby he’d give Oscar the Grouch a run for his money. Baloney? Well, Baloney is a sensitive sort who, in two longer episodes, wants to entertain his friends with a magic show and join in their fun at swimming. Shorter “mini-comics” between these sections provide good breaks for new readers who are, perhaps, just starting to make their ways through a longer text like this. Pizolli saves the strongest story for last, delivering a sweet and satisfying portrait of Peanut’s kindness to her friend Baloney when he feels blue. And readers needn’t feel blue themselves that the story is over since they can follow handy backmatter instructions to draw their own versions of the simple, line-drawn characters.
Here’s hoping there will be a bunch of Baloney in the future. (Graphic fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: April 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-368-05454-6
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion/LBYR
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2020
This tater trio, and worm, will keep readers laughing, singing, and cheering from the first page to the last.
One grumbly day, two mutant tater brothers vie to determine who is the greatest in the world.
It’s goofy-looking Rot Poe Tater, with an awesome unibrow and “surprisingly sturdy stick legs,” versus big brother Snot, a sleepy, upset couch potato with bedhead. Tot, their “usually super chipper” little sister, acts as the judge. The first challenge, a potato sack race with shades of “The Tortoise and the Hare,” ends in a tie. The second contest is Hot Potato Hill, where the brothers must roll down a hill after Tot. No one wins, and the third contest is a laugh-off. Rot declares he’s laughing so hard that he needs to pee his pants but then remembers he doesn’t wear pants. When Rot and Snot are laughed out, Tot is still giggling. That’s when the plot twists and twists again. The text, primarily boastful speech-bubble banter between Rot and Snot, also contains songs, cheers from an enthusiastic worm, and fun wordplay, including alliterative places names like Barrel Bottom Bog and the Moldy Mounds. Text in a smaller typeface alternates with graphic panels, keeping the action moving. Expressive potato faces make the action and emotions clear. Fans of the picture book Rot: The Cutest in the World (2016) will enjoy seeing the protagonist again; Clanton relies on the same simple yet expressive cartoon illustrations and humor.
This tater trio, and worm, will keep readers laughing, singing, and cheering from the first page to the last. (pictures of other taters who have excelled in the Hot Potato Hill challenge, facts about potatoes, lesson on how to draw Rot) (Graphic novel. 5-7)Pub Date: Nov. 8, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5344-9318-6
Page Count: 88
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2022
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