Attend the tale of a nefarious woolly con artist, and prepare for laughs galore.
Devilish sheep antics prove no match for average kid smarts.
Pale-skinned, blond-haired young Felix lives on a farm with the titular sheep, a woolly no-goodnik with a perpetual sneer and a snide gleam in his beady little eyes. One day, Tom Nancy lures Felix to a remote barn, whereupon the two use the sheep’s brain swapping machine (“I’ve always wanted to know what it’s like to be a person”). A day later, when Felix asks if it’s time to switch back, Tom Nancy explains that that’s not going to happen, taunting poor Felix with dramatic explanations of his mundane plans (“I’m going to eat your dessert and kiss your mother”). It’s only when the villain discovers that he’s doomed to an utterly dull life (homework and chores prove his undoing) that he comes back to Felix, only to receive his comeuppance. Fang employs a graphite and Photoshopped illustration technique that allows the characters to pop against their backgrounds. The true star of the show, however, is Tom Nancy himself, gleeful in his evil schemes and miserable when they succeed. Barnett’s text begs to be read to large groups, thanks to Tom Nancy’s outsize personality; this delightful read-aloud will elicit true gasps of surprise at the climax.
Attend the tale of a nefarious woolly con artist, and prepare for laughs galore. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 22, 2026
ISBN: 9781774885710
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2026
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
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