No silk purse here, just four little piggie ears.
Miniature pigs celebrate the Christmas holiday together in a story illustrated with photographs of the pampered porcine pair.
Prissy and Pop are pets who live in Florida with their owner, a first-grade teacher. The micro-pigs have their own Instagram account, stuffed pig toys named for them, and now their own book series. This holiday offering is the second, following Prissy & Pop: Big Day Out (2016). The two pigs are photographed in costumes as they decorate their Christmas tree, bake holiday treats, and sing carols on Christmas Eve before hanging up their stockings. On Christmas morning they pose in matching red pajamas in front of piles of presents. The photographs are slickly professional, and the design places a full-page photo opposite a text block set against red or green backgrounds on each double-page spread. The costumes and props are all cheerfully Christmas-y, and the piggies are undeniably cute. The text, however, is mostly just description of the activities in the photographs, with unconvincing dialogue and lame jokes as well. (“Hooves crossed!”). The dialogue is forced and determinedly upbeat, with lots of exclamation marks. (“ ‘It’s a winter wonderland!’ cries Prissy.”) There is no real plot to speak of.
No silk purse here, just four little piggie ears. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-243996-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2016
The book is available in just about every format--but this is the perfect one.
It's hard to believe that a pop-up wasn't the creators' original intention, so seamlessly do moveable parts dovetail into this modern classic's storyline.
In contrast to the tale's 1998 pop -up version, the figures here move on every page, and with an unusually graceful naturalism to boot. From pulling down Big Nutbrown Hare's ears on the opening spread to make sure he's listening to drowsily turning his head to accept a final good-night kiss in a multi-leveled pull-down tableau at the close, all of Little Nutbrown Hare's hops, stretches and small gestures serve the poetically spare text—as do Big Nutbrown's wider, higher responses to his charge's challenges. As readers turn a flap to read Big Nutbrown's "But I love you this much," his arms extend to demonstrate. The emotional connection between the two hares is clearer than ever in Jeram's peaceful, restrained outdoor scenes, which are slightly larger than those in the trade edition, and the closing scene is made even more intimate by hiding the closing line ("I love you right up to the moon—and back") until an inconspicuous flap is opened up.
The book is available in just about every format--but this is the perfect one. (Pop-up picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7636-5378-1
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Sept. 21, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2011
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IN THE NEWS
Lighthearted and un-scary enough for bedtime.
Talk show host Fallon and illustrator Deas follow up 5 More Sleeps ’Til Christmas (2020) with a story of a youngster preparing for Halloween.
“It’s FIVE more sleeps ’til Halloween, / that spooky time of year / where all the ghosts are wide awake / as nighttime’s drawing near.” A calendar page with a large numeral 5 curls before a bright orange pumpkin. An orange-haired, light-skinned moppet wearing an enormous pair of blue glasses is hunkered down in bed with Gary the dog, whose vibrant blue coloring matches the bedspread. Occasionally accompanied by a sibling, the young narrator counts down day by day, describing seasonal activities: picking out a costume, navigating a corn maze, watching scary movies, taking part in a parade, going on a hayride, and trick-or-treating. The rhyming verses are sometimes a bit rocky but always fun. The text is periodically punctuated by the word boo, which appears in large, cartoonlike lettering; that, along with the calendar countdown motif, adds a pleasant repetition. Though the child confides feelings of trepidation (“What if bats fly in my room? / I think I’ll close my window now”), descriptions of scary moments are always offset by brightly colored, exuberant artwork. Humor abounds: Gary looks both hilarious and sweet dressed in a ghost costume that matches the narrator’s. The final page neatly closes the circle as the child goes from anticipating the holiday to participating in it and back again.
Lighthearted and un-scary enough for bedtime. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9781250857798
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
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