Sure to gather fans in its wake. (Picture book. 3-6)
A rambunctious hamster tests its sleepy dad’s patience.
Beginning with frontmatter pages, cartoon-style drawings with digital coloring use speech balloons to deliver the text, which is completely written in dialogue. Sleeping Dad is rudely awakened by his rambunctious child, while another parent sleeps soundly, somehow blocking out the hyperactive barrage of chatter, to which Dad responds with monosyllabic utterances. Although he remains in bed for the entire book, the exclamation, “I even made pancakes!” gets Dad’s attention: “What?” he asks. “Or tried to…” responds the child. This sets up ensuing wordless depictions of a disastrous scene in the kitchen, its door wide open to the outside. All the spilled milk and such ultimately attracts a group of cats reminiscent of Wanda Gág’s millions. But before they descend, Dad, still in bed and listening to the incessant babble, has a bright idea: “Hey, can you do a Dad impression?” he asks, and the child immediately calms down and starts yawning and complaining of exhaustion. As the sun rises, child and father fall asleep, but a concluding wordless spread shows the family dog in hot pursuit of the cats as they race up the stairs toward the sleeping hamsters. Expert pacing distinguishes this picture book, which will provoke laughter from children and perhaps rueful recognition of pre-dawn rising from adults.
Sure to gather fans in its wake. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-375-84575-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Feb. 13, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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