This storybook’s repeating lyrics and cartoonish illustrations will appeal to its preschooler audience.
A centipede finds that he has everything he needs in this simple, sing-along picture book by MacKinnon (Erpill the Caterpillar, 2011) and illustrator McIntosh (Jessie, You’re So Messy!, 2016).
Ippy, an orange-and-yellow, glasses-wearing centipede, seems to have it all. In a series of four-page verses accompanied by full-page, cleverly anthropomorphic illustrations, readers are told about all the things that Ippy has to be grateful for. After each set of items, readers repeat the question “What more does he need?” Ippy begins with showing appreciation for his feet; the next verse covers singing and running; the following one reveals all the toys and belongings that he has; and the book ends by celebrating Ippy’s loving family. Although the structure may imply that there’s always something else to add to a list of what one needs, young readers will clearly understand that the author intends for a loving family to be the most important list item. The framework also allows children to brainstorm about things left out: toothbrushes and hairbrushes, food for picnics, and so on. Skilled teachers may direct such conversations into a comparison of wants versus needs and steer kids toward appreciating the things that they have. Sheet music is included for a potential singalong.
This storybook’s repeating lyrics and cartoonish illustrations will appeal to its preschooler audience.Pub Date: April 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4602-9352-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Sept. 5, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Gooney Bird Greene (with a silent E) is not your average second grader. She arrives in Mrs. Pidgeon’s class announcing: “I’m your new student and I just moved here from China. I want a desk right smack in the middle of the room, because I like to be right smack in the middle of everything.” Everything about her is unusual and mysterious—her clothes, hairstyles, even her lunches. Since the second graders have never met anyone like Gooney Bird, they want to hear more about her. Mrs. Pidgeon has been talking to the class about what makes a good story, so it stands to reason that Gooney will get her chance. She tells a series of stories that explain her name, how she came from China on a flying carpet, how she got diamond earrings at the prince’s palace, and why she was late for school (because she was directing a symphony orchestra). And her stories are “absolutely true.” Actually, they are explainable and mesh precisely with the teacher’s lesson, more important, they are a clever device that exemplify the elements of good storytelling and writing and also demonstrate how everyone can turn everyday events into stories. Savvy teachers should take note and add this to their shelf of “how a story is made” titles. Gooney Bird’s stories are printed in larger type than the narrative and the black-and-white drawings add the right touch of sauciness (only the cover is in color). A hybrid of Harriet, Blossom, and Anastasia, irrepressible Gooney Bird is that rare bird in children’s fiction: one that instantly becomes an amusing and popular favorite. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-618-23848-4
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2002
Donavan's friends collect buttons and marbles, but he collects words. ``NUTRITION,'' ``BALLYHOO,'' ``ABRACADABRA''—these and other words are safely stored on slips of paper in a jar. As it fills, Donavan sees a storage problem developing and, after soliciting advice from his teacher and family, solves it himself: Visiting his grandma at a senior citizens' apartment house, he settles a tenants' argument by pulling the word ``COMPROMISE'' from his jar and, feeling ``as if the sun had come out inside him,'' discovers the satisfaction of giving his words away. Appealingly detailed b&w illustrations depict Donavan and his grandma as African-Americans. This Baltimore librarian's first book is sure to whet readers' appetites for words, and may even start them on their own savory collections. (Fiction. 8-11)
Pub Date: June 30, 1994
ISBN: 0-06-020190-8
Page Count: 72
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1994
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