Readers may wonder if it’s meant to be parody.
Three misbehaving young visitors give Macca the alpaca hairy conniptions.
The storyline is best regarded as a vehicle for scenes of big-eyed, dainty-hoofed super cuties and a narrative so choked with trite and forced rhymes that it’s hard to read with a straight face. The bully-beating woolly introduced in Macca the Alpaca (2020) initially welcomes a visit from two nieces and a nephew (“That guy is called Drew. / He’s Macca’s nephew!”). However, they play so wildly that the house is soon a wreck, and they display terrible table manners to boot: “They flicked all their peas / and scoffed down candies.” Confectionery-bright backgrounds set off equally candy-colored crias surrounded by similarly hued rubble. No sooner does “Uncle Mac / completely blow his stack,” however, than all three repentantly rush off to clean everything up and then fall asleep in an angelic little pile—the titular stack. Sure, young readers will definitely buy that as viable behavior-modeling. On the other hand, the snortworthy verse, sweet pastel colors, and, especially, all those huge, round eyes with their long lashes may beguile even dyed-in-the-wool cynics. For a few moments, at least, and then they will brush their teeth. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.9-by-19-inch double-page spreads viewed at 60% of actual size.)
Readers may wonder if it’s meant to be parody. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-338-71622-1
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A worthy message wrapped up in a playful romp.
A romp about saying “I don’t know.”
An apartment building full of cartoonlike creatures shown interacting through their windows (a clever illustrative decision) evokes the lively life of urban living. When one neighbor asks another (via the window) to wake them up in “20 coconuts,” the neighbor agrees but then admits to himself that he doesn’t know what that means—something that bothers him because he is known for being a know-it-all; in fact, he comes from a family of know-it-alls. Ah, pressure! The know-it-all gets himself into a tizzy, cleans his ears and finds a sock and a chicken, consults “Phoney” (his cellphone), and even gets his brain washed by Wally’s Wash Works. If this all sounds extremely silly and somewhat chaotic, it is—which means kids will probably love it. Eventually, he wakes up his neighbor with his yelling (right on time, apparently) but admits to her he doesn’t know what 20 coconuts means. She offers to explain, but then he says he has to be somewhere in “11 bananas,” throwing her into confusion. The energetic (some may say frenzied) tone is amplified by illustrations that have lots going on, with various characters talking in dialogue bubbles to each other, but the message itself comes across as a little light until an explanatory note from the “brains” spells it out—it’s OK to say you don’t know. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A worthy message wrapped up in a playful romp. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-31196-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
Like marshmallow on top of caramel.
Little Bear loves everything about Christmas, but there’s one thing he loves even more.
The Bear household is busily getting ready for Christmas. Mommy Bear wraps and bakes; Daddy Bear brings home a humongous tree; Little Bear exults in it all. With each new Christmas tradition that’s introduced, from opening Christmas cards to receiving carolers, Little Bear sings a song that celebrates it. “I love ornaments, and garland, and lights on a string, / candy canes, stockings—and all of the things / that make Christmas perfect—oh, yes, I do! / But the thing that I love more than Christmas is—” But before Little Bear can complete his rhyme, each time he is interrupted by a new element of Christmas to celebrate. Since that terminal rhyme is always set up with one that ends with an “oo” sound, readers will not be surprised in the least when Mommy and Daddy interrupt him one last time with an emphatic “YOU!” It’s all so uber-idealized readers may find themselves gagging on the syrup—it even seems to get at Hattie: Daddy Bear’s smug “What an exceedingly talented family we are” has a whiff of irony to it. Warnes’ cartoon bears inhabit a cozy, middle-class home; while the carolers are clothed, the Bear family is not, but readers may notice a white marking on Mommy Bear’s chest where a string of pearls might rest.
Like marshmallow on top of caramel. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68010-208-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
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