Chaos erupts in the canine classroom when rambunctious Aggie attends obedience training. When Aggie is expelled from dog school, Ben tries to independently teach his pet, but neighborhood distractions overwhelm the pooch. Active Aggie won’t sit or stay until the boy finally pays heed to his blind neighbor’s advice and substitutes playing fetch for rigid commands. Ben proves to be the responsible pet parent in the anticipated conclusion when he maturely announces, “You are not a bad dog. But you must learn.” Slightly more complex in sentence structure and narrative than its predecessor (Aggie and Ben, 2006), this three-chapter story comically explores the budding friendship between a rowdy pet and her young owner. Dormer’s exaggerated angular designs capture the frenzy in calculatedlydisproportionate cartoons. Pen-and-ink and watercolors combine thin lines and bold colors to energize Aggie’s antics. While undisciplined, Aggie is one lovable pup; with a slight turn of her large head and a flip of her lopsided ears, she demonstrates why dogs are known as children’s best friends. (Early reader. 6-8)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-57091-645-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2009
Patchy work, both visually and teleologically.
The sultana of high-fructose sentimentality reminds readers that they really are all that.
Despite the title, we’re actually here for a couple of reasons. In fulsome if vague language Tillman embeds one message, that acts of kindness “may triple for days… / or set things in motion in different ways,” in a conceptually separate proposition that she summarizes thus: “perhaps you forgot— / a piece of the world that is precious and dear / would surely be missing if you weren’t here.” Her illustrations elaborate on both themes in equally abstract terms: a lad releases a red kite that ends up a sled for fox kits, while its ribbons add decorative touches to bird nests and a moose before finally being vigorously twirled by a girl and (startlingly) a pair of rearing tigers. Without transition the focus then shifts as the kite is abruptly replaced by a red ball. Both embodied metaphors, plus children and animals, gather at the end for a closing circle dance. The illustrator lavishes attention throughout on figures of children and wild animals, which are depicted with such microscopically precise realism that every fine hair and feather is visible, but she then floats them slightly above hazy, generic backdrops. The overall design likewise has a slapdash feel, as some spreads look relatively crowded with verses while others bear only a single line or phrase.
Patchy work, both visually and teleologically. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-05626-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A Southwestern cooking show spied through the farmhouse window inspires a rooster weary of the same-old same-old to plan a farmyard fiesta with filched garden tomatoes, chiles, cilantro and other produce. With a rodent syndicate supplying the chips for the salsa, the cheese for the nachos, the avocados for the “quackamole” and the requisite sombreros, the stage is set. Bogan’s big cartoon scenes capture the increasing excitement, as well as the general bliss brought on by plenty of pre-fiesta snacking. Alas, it all comes to naught, though, as the produce is suddenly appropriated by the farmer’s wife for County Fair tamales. Still, three recipes in the back, a cutout poster attached to the jacket, plus a new venture by the rooster into French cuisine, compensate, at least in part, for the downer ending. Olé! (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2005
ISBN: 1-58234-972-X
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2005
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