Owen’s world is perfect until his parents decide to add a bear to their family. “It started off just right. I had mom and a dad and my own set of blocks. I had everything I needed.” His parents bring home a huge, brown bear named Gary who invades Owen’s perfect life and territory. Gary takes up Owen’s parents’ time, plays with his toys, ruins his markers and swing and keeps him up all night with his overwhelming snoring. It takes a while for Owen to adjust to this enormous change, but like children everywhere with a new sibling or other addition to the family, he learns to appreciate and even love the interloper. The droll illustrations, in which Owen and Gary appear to have been cut out and glued into a suburban subdivision, put the new brothers at the center of the action. Despite the cartoon style, emotions are clear. Owen’s eyes, near tears, zero in on Gary’s fearful expression at their first meeting; the two smile at each other while sharing blocks. Gentle, wordless pages explore their developing friendship and invite readers to provide the narration. The only misstep is the use of colored text rather than quotation marks to show speech, which could be an unnecessary impediment for new readers. Nevertheless, a sweet and refreshing spin on the old new-sibling plot. (Picture book. 2-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25257-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
Another Brett winner to add to the shelf.
A classic Russian tale gets Brett’s signature artwork and a twist ending.
When Badger Girl finds a giant turnip in the vegetable patch, she immediately starts thinking of all the tasty things that could be made with a turnip that size. But she can’t pull it out, not even with the assistance of Badger Boy, Mother Badger, or Father Badger, each new character heralded in the recto vignette on the previous page. Passing friends—Hedgie, Mr. Ram, and Vanya, the horse—join in, one by one, as the snowflakes signaling winter’s arrival start to fall, but even all pulling together, they can’t manage it. A rooster who had a narrow escape from a cooking pot happens by. Meanwhile, a mother bear and two cubs, whom observant readers have been watching in the vignettes on the versos, climb into their winter den to hibernate only to find a giant turnip in their bed. Well, their pushing and Rooster’s pulling coincide to pop the turnip out, and it’s turnip pancakes for those aboveground, sleep for the bears, and an honorary home for Rooster. Brett brings the Russian countryside setting to life. Her anthropomorphized animals wear clothing in shades of blues, white, and reds, and the patterns are beautiful. The wooden fences and house are elaborately carved, and Brett’s borders are highly detailed, many times looking like carved wood.
Another Brett winner to add to the shelf. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Nov. 3, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-3991-7070-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends.
Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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