by Martha Weston & illustrated by Martha Weston ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 15, 2002
Time-travel, dinosaurs, and a scientist-inventor add up to a simple but satisfying equation in this mid-level easy reader. Dr. Clock travels in his time machine to the era of the dinosaurs, where he meets two plant-eating pachycephalosauri (cleverly introduced in the text with phonetic pronunciation of their tongue-twisting title). He observes the plant-eating dinosaurs, recording their appearance and habits in his notebook like a serious scientist, even when the dinosaurs are trying to carry him off. Dr. Clock escapes in his time machine, traveling forward in time and landing by mistake in the middle of a jousting tournament with knights in shining armor. Weston (Annie and Bo and the Big Surprise, 2002, etc.) inserts lots of droll humor in both her text and watercolor-with-ink illustrations, with clever little jokes and plays on words that new readers will enjoy. “Dr. Clock cannot write in his notebook,” says the text as the picture shows him bundled up in the dinosaur’s arms. This short but solid story could be used for dinosaur or time-travel themes or could easily be integrated into first-grade lessons in scientific observation or creation of time lines. Better yet, it’s just plain fun to read. Though only time will tell, Dr. Clock seems ready to rock on with more adventures in his time-travel machine. (Easy reader. 4-8)
Pub Date: March 15, 2002
ISBN: 0-8234-1661-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2002
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by Lisa Robinson ; illustrated by Lucy Fleming ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 8, 2019
A delicious triumph over fear of night creatures.
Pippa conquers a fear of the creatures that emerge from her storybooks at night.
Pippa’s “wonderfully wild imagination” can sometimes run “a little TOO wild.” During the day, she wears her “armor” and is a force to be reckoned with. But in bed at night, Pippa worries about “villains and monsters and beasts.” Sharp-toothed and -taloned shadows, dragons, and pirates emerge from her storybooks like genies from a bottle, just to scare her. Pippa flees to her parents’ room only to be brought back time and again. Finally, Pippa decides that she “needs a plan” to “get rid of them once and for all.” She decides to slip a written invitation into every book, and that night, they all come out. She tries subduing them with a lasso, an eye patch, and a sombrero, but she is defeated. Next, she tries “sashes and sequins and bows,” throwing the fashion pieces on the monsters, who…“begin to pose and primp and preen.” After that success, their fashion show becomes a nightly ritual. Clever Pippa’s transformation from scared victim of her own imagination to leader of the monster pack feels fairly sudden, but it’s satisfying nonetheless. The cartoony illustrations effectively use dynamic strokes, shadow, and light to capture action on the page and the feeling of Pippa's fears taking over her real space. Pippa and her parents are brown-skinned with curls of various textures.
A delicious triumph over fear of night creatures. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5420-9300-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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by Elise Broach & illustrated by David Small ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 25, 2007
What if one day every merchant in town offered up, and indeed, insisted that shoppers take home a live dinosaur (free) with every purchase? That’s what happens to a boy and his mother in this sweet, absurd story that unfolds very much like a dream—or a nightmare, depending on the reader’s perspective on having a large dinosaur as a pet. In Small’s comical, wonderfully expressive watercolor-and-ink drawings, it’s easy to identify the mother’s reaction to the bonus triceratops (free with a dozen doughnuts); stegosaurus (from the doctor instead of stickers); and pterosaur (from the barber instead of the usual balloon): unmitigated horror, inversely proportionate to her son’s delight. The hulking beasts are irresistibly endearing, though, as they wait patiently, doglike, for their new owners outside all the town establishments and ultimately, once at home in the family’s backyard, prove their worth as household laborers, cleaning gutters and rescuing far-flung Frisbees. In the end, the boy’s friends bring their own newly acquired dinos over to his house for a poolside party—and he knows Mom has truly come around when she calls the baker for more doughnuts. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 25, 2007
ISBN: 978-0-689-86922-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2007
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