by Madeleine L'Engle & illustrated by Christine Davenier ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2001
Consequences attendant upon the arrival of a new member of the household, told from the perspective of a superior poodle, from the usually more sedate Newbery winner. Touché L'Engle-Franklin is unsettled—and miffed—when a baby, a human baby, makes an appearance at her house. Touché sees Jo as a rival: "One dog is enough for any family. I fail to see why I did not satisfy all requirements." Touché is, after all, bright and witty and obedient and knock-you-dead gorgeous, if she does say so herself. And this new beast, why, it doesn't even have a tail, let alone enough hair. It wears diapers, for goodness sake. But Jo grows at an alarming clip and soon enough is paying attention to Touché, an "encouraging sign of intelligence." That she likes. Indeed, she comes to the conclusion, the "unpredictable, surprising, amazing, astonishing, astounding conclusion: in every home there should be at least two dogs!" Sibling rivalry should always be so handled, minus all that messy rancor and physicality. Davenier's (Iris and Walter, 2000, etc.) watery, wiggly colors create the perfect old-fashioned look that this remembrance requires. And L'Engle's author's note and original pictures introduce the real poodle who inspired the story. Touché indeed. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-58717-040-X
Page Count: 48
Publisher: SeaStar/North-South
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2001
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by Madeleine L'Engle & adapted by Hope Larson & illustrated by Hope Larson
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by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018
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
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by Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean
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by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean
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by Joan Holub ; illustrated by James Dean
by Phil Rosenthal & Lily Rosenthal ; illustrated by Luke Flowers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts.
With one taste of despised mustard, a child pivots from rejecting new foods to seeking them.
Dad takes Lil to a food truck festival. Lil, who narrates the story, is nervous; this child’s list of acceptable foods is short (pizza, rice, grilled cheese, french fries, and vanilla ice cream). Dad loves varied tastes and repeatedly reminds Lil of his rule: “Just try it!” With a “YECCCH!” or an “EWWWWWW!” Lil refuses a bagel loaded with toppings, linguini with clams, Peking duck, pizza with spinach and garlic, and a pretzel covered with Lil’s most hated of foods: mustard. Frustrated, Lil accidentally knocks the pretzel onto Dad’s shirt. Lil apologizes, takes a lick of mustard…and instantly learns to appreciate every rejected offering. Lil then uses the title mantra to pressure Dad onto a nausea-inducing roller-coaster ride. Bright, cartoon-style illustrations emphasize the pair's upbeat mood. Food neophobia, or an aversion to eating anything novel, has complex psychosocial roots. But in this blithe little fable, the child’s resistance is completely overcome with a single accidental exposure, and the formerly picky eater immediately becomes a novelty seeker. The turnaround here is implausible; if this book creates any expectations of a sudden dramatic change in a child’s behavior, that would be a disservice. Both Dad and Lil are light-skinned.
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781665942638
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
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