A joyful expression of wishes made true.
A frog can make itself into a unicorn—with a can of Magical Unicorn Sprinkles.
Although stubborn Goat tells Frog that it cannot be a unicorn, Frog proves the skeptical animal wrong. Frog first tries to convince Goat by donning a party hat for a horn and a tail made of colored streamers and by carrying the special sprinkles. Frog boasts of living “on a fluffy cloud.” (The cloud is made of cotton balls.) Frog can fly. (The illustration shows Frog perched on a swing.) Frog’s “best friend is a fairy.” (In reality, that friend is a cow.) In a spread that some children will find especially funny, Frog declares, “I eat flowers and toot rainbows!” and farts a smelly arc of colors in Goat’s face. Angry Goat debunks the assertions, and sad Frog almost gives up the dream, taking off the horn and throwing away the can of Sprinkles. Goat unexpectedly apologizes: “Frog? I’m sorry. You made a really good unicorn costume.” Even as Goat is apologizing, the container of sprinkles “boings” off the backs of many sheep and finally lands on Frog, and “POOF!” Frog is now an honest-to-goodness purple unicorn! The brightly colored, cartoonlike illustrations with lots of funny farm animals work well with the zany content.
A joyful expression of wishes made true. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5107-1469-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
Like the last sip of a chocolate milkshake, it’s very satisfying.
A story-reading dragon—what’s not to like?
Duncan the Dragon loves to read. But the stories so excite him, his imagination catches fire—and so do his books, leaving him wondering about the endings. Does the captain save the ship? Do aliens conquer the Earth? Desperate to reach the all-important words “The End” (“like the last sip of a chocolate milk shake”), he tries reading in the refrigerator, in front of a bank of electric fans, and even in a bathtub filled with ice. Nothing works. He decides to ask a friend to read to him, but the raccoon, possum, and bull all refuse. Weeping, Duncan is ready to give up, but one of his draconic tears runs “split-splat into a mouse,” a book-loving mouse! Together they battle sea monsters, dodge icebergs, and discover new lands, giving rise to a fast friendship. Driscoll’s friendly illustrations are pencil sketches painted in Adobe Photoshop; she varies full-bleed paintings with vignettes surrounded by white space, imaginary scenes rendered in monochrome to set them apart. Duncan himself is green, winged, and scaly, but his snout is unthreateningly bovine, and he wears red sneakers with his shoelaces untied—a nicely vulnerable touch. Though there are lots of unusual friendship stories in picture books, the vivid colors, expressive faces, and comic details make this one likely to be a storytime hit.
Like the last sip of a chocolate milkshake, it’s very satisfying. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-385-75507-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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A good choice to share with wriggly listeners, who will soon be joining in.
A Halloween book that rides on the rhythms of “Over in the Meadow.”
Although Halloween rhyming counting books abound, this stands out, with a text that begs to be read aloud and cartoony digital illustrations that add goofy appeal. A girl and two boys set off on Halloween night to go trick-or-treating. As the children leave the cozy, warm glow of their street, readers see a haunted house on a hill, with gravestones dotting the front yard. Climbing the twisty path to the dark estate takes time, so the story turns to the antics inside the house. “At the old haunted house in a room with no sun / lived a warty green witch and her wee witch one. ‘SPELL!’ cried the witch. ‘POOF!’ cried the one. / And they both practiced spells in the room with no sun.” The actions of the scary creatures within may seem odd, but the rhyme must go on: Cats scratch, goblins dust, monsters stir, and mummies mix. Eventually the three kids reach the front door and are invited in for stew, cake and brew. At first shocked by the gruesome fare, the children recover quickly and get caught up in partying with the slightly spooky but friendly menagerie.
A good choice to share with wriggly listeners, who will soon be joining in. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 12, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4778-4769-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
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