Appealing, cozy illustrations uplift a fuzzy narrative.
A gathering of woodland animals tries to figure out what “Art” is.
Looking through the window of a snug log cabin in a snowy clearing, Pine Marten watches Human inside and wonders what Human’s up to now. Readers will see that the fairly mature-looking person with light skin and red hair is painting a picture. Chickadee tells Pine Marten it overheard that Human is “The Artist” and is “Making Art.” But “what is Art?” the animals who are gathering wonder. Hare thinks it’s a signal of danger, Coyote thinks it is “a way to find shelter,” and Coyote’s pups think it’s playing. Finally, the cat chimes in from indoors and informs them it is an expert on what Art is. But the cat’s sophisticated (and perhaps tongue-in-cheek) artspeak explanation does nothing to enlighten the animals—and will also be over the heads of most if not all child readers. When Pine Marten has the idea to make marks in the snow with her paws, the other animals follow suit: scratching marks, digging, or just playing. At this point, the narrative stretches laboriously to connect this to the concept of what art is—the disconnect being using animal behaviors as stand-ins for anthropocentric concepts. Happily, the illustrations, with their nature-hued palette, simple, sturdy forms, and good use of white space—suggesting both cozy and outdoorsy—are clearer in their meaning and presentation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.5-by-19-inch double-page spreads viewed at 30.5% actual size.)
Appealing, cozy illustrations uplift a fuzzy narrative. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7352-6419-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2020
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too many bugs, figuratively.
Lucy, “the youngest member of a family of fireflies,” must overcome an irrational, moon-induced anxiety in order to leave her family tree trunk and glow.
The first six pages pull readers into a lush, beautiful world of nighttime: “When the sun has set, silence falls over the Big Forest, and all of the nighttime animals wake up.” Mixed media provide an enchanting forest background, with stylized flora and fauna eventually illuminated by a large, benign moon, because the night “doesn’t like to catch them by surprise.” Turning the page catches readers by surprise, though: the family of fireflies is decidedly comical and silly-looking. Similarly, the text moves from a lulling, magical cadence to a distinct shift in mood as the bugs ready themselves for their foray into the night: “They wave their bottoms in the air, wiggle their feelers, take a deep, deep breath, and sing, ‘Here we go, it’s time to glow!’ ” It’s an acceptable change, but more unevenness follows. Lucy’s excitement about finally joining the other bugs turns to “sobbing” two nights in a row. Instead of directly linking her behavior to understandable reactions of children to newness, the text undermines itself by making Lucy’s parents’ sweet reassurances impotent and using the grandmother’s scientific explanation of moonlight as an unnecessary metaphor. Further detracting from the story, the text becomes ever denser and more complex over the book’s short span.
Too many bugs, figuratively. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Nov. 10, 2015
ISBN: 978-84-16147-00-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cuento de Luz
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2015
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