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Black and White Cat, White and Black Dog

In Shannon’s debut children’s book, a cat and dog go from apprehensive cohabitants to best friends.
When a small cat joins the home of a large dog, the two animals are initially suspicious of each other. Shannon’s pastel illustrations, in vibrant hues of lime green, cornflower blue, fire-engine red and tangerine, depict the peaceful home where the animals coexist as they keep watchful eyes on each other. Textured, undulating edged frames contain the simple images to create engaging compositions, and animal paw-prints add decorative flourishes on the pages’ corners. As the title suggests, the white dog with black markings and black cat with white accents are opposites, both in appearance and habits; the dog is loud and energetic, while the cat appears sharp and intimidating. The animals’ relationship changes one day when the dog shows the cat an unexpected kindness. The two soon learn that they share many common interests and become inseparable companions. Although Shannon’s prose isn’t particularly rhythmic, its language is simple and easy for young children to follow. However, the repeated identifications of the animals as “the white and black dog” and “the black and white cat” may prove to be tongue twisters when read aloud. At pivotal points in the story, Shannon pauses the narrative, asking young readers to consider the events: “White and black dog shared her food with black and white cat. What a nice thing to do. Are you surprised?” By engaging in such critical thinking, young readers may better absorb the story’s lessons about compassion and judging others by their characters. Although the unlikely companionship between a cat and a dog isn’t an especially original or exciting theme, the story’s moral is applicable and universally relatable to children. Furthermore, the vivid colors may help keep young eyes engaged.

A creatively illustrated, if often heard, lesson about acceptance and friendship for preschool to kindergarten-aged children.

Pub Date: Oct. 23, 2013

ISBN: 978-0989773201

Page Count: 36

Publisher: Muse Direct

Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S SPRINGTIME

From the Little Blue Truck series

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.

Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.

This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.

Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)

Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-544-93809-0

Page Count: 16

Publisher: HMH Books

Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018

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