Bad bunny. good book. (Early reader. 5-8)
A bunny behaves badly. But is he all bad?
In the first of three chapters, an unnamed narrator immediately breaks the fourth wall and introduces a bunny named Jack (presumably a jackrabbit, given his name). Ever the friendly, pizza-loving mammal, Jack waves a cheerful hello to readers. But the mood shifts when the Lady comes along. Jack descends from his treehouse to snatch the elderly human woman’s purse. “Bad Jack!” scolds the narrator. “Jack, give that back!” Jack does—but not before using the Lady’s lipstick on himself! Subsequent chapters detail Jack’s further misbehaviors involving a farm dog named Rex and another encounter with the Lady in her home. The interplay between Barnett’s verbal and Pizzoli’s visual humor results in rollicking surprises at almost every page turn. Repetition and a total word count of fewer than 90 words (at most 17 per page) provide ample support (and entertainment) to emerging readers. Pizzoli’s technique combines firm black outlines, solid fill, and printlike backgrounds, creating textured, wonderfully expressive cartoon illustrations. Sequel Jack Blasts Off! publishes simultaneously and takes the duo’s winning formula into an outer-space setting—proving that good manners really do transcend species. Both books end with instructions on how to draw various characters. Adult readers may note that Jack’s too-consistent wickedness combines with minimal consequences to send mixed messages.
Bad bunny. good book. (Early reader. 5-8) (Mostly) good book(Early reader. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-593-11379-0
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A first-rate sharkfest, unusually nutritious for all its brevity.
Buzz and his buzzy buddy open a spinoff series of nonfiction early readers with an aquarium visit.
Buzz: “Like other fish, sharks breathe through gills.” Fly Guy: “GILLZZ.” Thus do the two pop-eyed cartoon tour guides squire readers past a plethora of cramped but carefully labeled color photos depicting dozens of kinds of sharks in watery settings, along with close-ups of skin, teeth and other anatomical features. In the bite-sized blocks of narrative text, challenging vocabulary words like “carnivores” and “luminescence” come with pronunciation guides and lucid in-context definitions. Despite all the flashes of dentifrice and references to prey and smelling blood in the water, there is no actual gore or chowing down on display. Sharks are “so cool!” proclaims Buzz at last, striding out of the gift shop. “I can’t wait for our next field trip!” (That will be Fly Guy Presents: Space, scheduled for September 2013.)
A first-rate sharkfest, unusually nutritious for all its brevity. (Informational easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-50771-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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