As a story, it’s rather slight, but it does what it sets out to do well and with a sunny disposition to boot
Affection for his boy boosts a pet monster’s confidence with spectacular results in a breezy, enjoyable app.
In a world where people keep brightly colored, friendly monsters as companions—sort of like overgrown dogs—a kid named Ben receives a blue beast named Gurk as a birthday gift. Gurk is sweet but terribly shy. The puppylike creature hides in a closet and won’t interact with anyone but Ben. Gurk’s shyness causes Ben to miss the circus, but to make up for it, Gurk organizes an all-monster circus that turns out to be even better than the regular one. Soon, Gurk is teaching other monsters how to overcome their own shyness. Narrated in the voice of Ben with boyish enthusiasm, the story presents plenty of surprises, mostly in background animations. As in many other apps, touching characters and items on the screen creates little moments, but these are especially clever, fitting in well with the skewed, atomic-age art style. There are also eight games, but they’re short and simple, enhancing rather than distracting from the story. A high-wire balancing game at the circus and another that involves shooting marshmallows at targets are highlights. There’s lots of energy in the presentation, even with navigation that is unobtrusive and neat.
As a story, it’s rather slight, but it does what it sets out to do well and with a sunny disposition to boot .(iPad storybook app. 4-7)Pub Date: March 20, 2014
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Busy Bee
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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