Kids are sure to ask questions about the plot holes, but others will enjoy the happy ending.
Foster boy Spike, meanly called a mutt by his peers, heads to D.C. in this story of finding and belonging by Levin (Little Cheese: The Brie that Brought Sunshine to Chicago, 2013, etc.), with occasional illustrations from Mitevska (Too Many Shoes for Tenlei, 2017, etc.).
With text density appropriate to a chapter book, Levin introduces Spike, a pale boy with orange hair and freckles. Everyone calls Spike a mutt, which nice foster mom Mrs. Hope suggests is because “you look like you have a little bit of everyone in you.” Spike still thinks it’s an insult—until the new president says he wants a family dog who is a mutt, just like him. Spike takes a bus to Washington, D.C., to apply for the position of first dog, and though he gets a happy ending (he becomes a member of the first family), his aspirations never climb higher than being a pet. The tale touches on homelessness and problems of the foster care system, but the cheeky star never gives them much thought. Mitevska’s design for Spike doesn’t reflect his mixed heritage, but the contrast between him and the African-American first family shows the appeal of crossing bridges to make a family, and Levin depicts Spike’s brave adventure in an approachable vocabulary for strong independent readers.
Kids are sure to ask questions about the plot holes, but others will enjoy the happy ending.Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-979967-16-7
Page Count: 26
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
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