A fun story that promotes vocabulary development and dictionary use.
Calvin loves words and takes his dictionary with him everywhere he goes in order to ensure that he knows the right word to describe every situation—especially those involving his brother.
When he wakes up in the morning, Calvin brings the dictionary to the breakfast table, where he showers it with milk that shoots out of his nose after his brother tells a joke. He even reads it in class instead of paying attention to the teacher. Throughout the day, Calvin browses his dictionary in search of the perfect word and finds words like mayhem, subterfuge, and pulverize. While each word makes him think about his brother, none seems to be the perfect fit. After a long day, Calvin lands on his word, slips out of bed for a glass of water, and tiptoes to his brother’s room to repay him for the jokes. This lighthearted tale of two brothers who enjoy reading will make a wise choice for classroom lessons about using a dictionary and thesaurus. The words that Calvin looks up are set in brightly colored boldface type, and while they are not actively defined in context, their meanings are clear from the narrative. (Definitions and phonetic pronunciations are scrawled on the endpapers, as if on a chalkboard.) The dictionary itself narrates, but it is not depicted with any anthropomorphic features (i.e. a face or arms) or behaviors (i.e. walking), though it does mention its bent spine and riffling its own pages. Calvin and his family have light-brown skin and black hair. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at 75% of actual size.)
A fun story that promotes vocabulary development and dictionary use. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-88448-822-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tilbury House
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note.
Little Honey Bunny Funnybunny loves baseball almost as much as she loves her big brother P.J.—though it’s a close-run thing.
Readers familiar with the pranks P.J. plays on his younger sibling in older episodes of the series (most illustrated by Roger Bollen) will be amused—and perhaps a little confused—to see him in the role of perfect big brother after meeting his swaddled little sister for the first time in mama’s lap. But here, along with being a constant companion and “always happy to see her,” he cements his heroic status in her eyes by hitting a home run for his baseball team and then patiently teaching her how to play T-ball. After carefully coaching her and leading her through warm-up exercises, he even sits in the stands, loudly cheering her on as she scores the winning run in her own very first game. “‘You are the best brother a bunny could ever have!’” she burbles. This tale’s a tad blander compared with others centered on P.J. and his sister, but it’s undeniably cheery, with text well structured for burgeoning readers. The all-smiles animal cast in Bowers’ cartoon art features a large and diversely hued family of bunnies sporting immense floppy ears as well as a multispecies crowd of furry onlookers equally varied of color, with one spectator in a wheelchair.
A tale of mutual adoration that hits a sweet note. (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 6, 2026
ISBN: 9798217032464
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A nicely inventive little morality “tail” for newly independent readers.
Two little rats decide to show the world how tough they are, with unpredictable results.
Louie and Ralphie Ratso want to be just like their single dad, Big Lou: tough! They know that “tough” means doing mean things to other animals, like stealing Chad Badgerton’s hat. Chad Badgerton is a big badger, so taking that hat from him proves that Louie and Ralphie are just as tough as they want to be. However, it turns out that Louie and Ralphie have just done a good deed instead of a bad one: Chad Badgerton had taken that hat from little Tiny Crawley, a mouse, so when Tiny reclaims it, they are celebrated for goodness rather than toughness. Sadly, every attempt Louie and Ralphie make at doing mean things somehow turns nice. What’s a little boy rat supposed to do to be tough? Plus, they worry about what their dad will say when he finds out how good they’ve been. But wait! Maybe their dad has some other ideas? LaReau keeps the action high and completely appropriate for readers embarking on chapter books. Each of the first six chapters features a new, failed attempt by Louie and Ralphie to be mean, and the final, seventh chapter resolves everything nicely. The humor springs from their foiled efforts and their reactions to their failures. Myers’ sprightly grayscale drawings capture action and characters and add humorous details, such as the Ratsos’ “unwelcome” mat.
A nicely inventive little morality “tail” for newly independent readers. (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-7636-0
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2016
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