A pleasant outdoor adventure with a calm animal cast and an easy introduction to numbers.
A dog finds many new friends in this debut counting book.
A small dog wearing a yellow kerchief around his neck is lonely. When he encounters two cats, he offers to share his bone with them; they decline but are happy to play with him, nonetheless. The trio meet three frogs, four chicks (and one uncounted mother hen), five kites, six bees, and more groups of birds, plants, and insects—up to a count of 10 in a group. Some of these join the party, but others are simply part of the scenery as the friends go on their way. At the end of the day, the dog is sad to say goodbye, “But then he remember[s] all the fun he had” and looks forward to future adventures. Brown’s rhymes are well constructed, although in some stanzas, the rhythm falters slightly. Harvey’s mixed-media illustrations combine linework with very soft watercolor backgrounds; even the color of a red barn feels subdued. Although there’s some action—a rainstorm catches the friends unaware—most of the story is as low-key as the color scheme, making this a good choice for bedtime reading. Lap readers will enjoy pointing at and counting the numbered creatures, objects, and plants.
A pleasant outdoor adventure with a calm animal cast and an easy introduction to numbers.Pub Date: March 9, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-949711-66-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bluewater Publications
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A comical, fresh look at crayons and color
Duncan wants to draw, but instead of crayons, he finds a stack of letters listing the crayons’ demands in this humorous tale.
Red is overworked, laboring even on holidays. Gray is exhausted from coloring expansive spaces (elephants, rhinos and whales). Black wants to be considered a color-in color, and Peach? He’s naked without his wrapper! This anthropomorphized lot amicably requests workplace changes in hand-lettered writing, explaining their work stoppage to a surprised Duncan. Some are tired, others underutilized, while a few want official titles. With a little creativity and a lot of color, Duncan saves the day. Jeffers delivers energetic and playful illustrations, done in pencil, paint and crayon. The drawings are loose and lively, and with few lines, he makes his characters effectively emote. Clever spreads, such as Duncan’s “white cat in the snow” perfectly capture the crayons’ conundrum, and photographic representations of both the letters and coloring pages offer another layer of texture, lending to the tale’s overall believability.
A comical, fresh look at crayons and color . (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: June 27, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-399-25537-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.
A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.
He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts. When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
