Although the message that newer is not always better will be welcome with caregivers, it’s unlikely this book will change...
When show-and-tell becomes all about the latest gadgets and newest stuff, Sister and Brother come up with an item for Sister to present that breaks the consumerist mold.
It all starts with a cellphone. After that particular day’s show-and-tell, all the cubs go home and beg for one of their own. Some parents give in. Some do not. On the next scheduled day, Sister brings in her Bearbie doll, but before it’s her turn, a friend presents the new Fit-and-Trim Super-Exercise Bearbie, and suddenly Sister’s Bearbie looks plain and boring. On the way home, Brother helps a glum Sister think of a solution, and the two raid the attic; the perfect thing turns out to be old, interactive, but non-electronic: a Twirl-a-Hoop (readers will know it as a hula hoop). It is a huge hit at the next show-and-tell, and not just among the students: Teacher Jane and Principal Honeycomb even take turns. Unfortunately, the tale ends there, and readers will never find out if Sister has changed the show-off nature of her class’ show-and-tell presentations. And while Sister and Brother’s mission is an admirable one, it’s rather unlike children of their ages. The look of Berenstain’s illustrations fits seamlessly with earlier series entries by his parents.
Although the message that newer is not always better will be welcome with caregivers, it’s unlikely this book will change any children’s minds about trying to top their classmates’ latest and greatest gadgets. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-235031-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HarperFestival
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
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Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with...
Reynolds and Brown have crafted a Halloween tale that balances a really spooky premise with the hilarity that accompanies any mention of underwear.
Jasper Rabbit needs new underwear. Plain White satisfies him until he spies them: “Creepy underwear! So creepy! So comfy! They were glorious.” The underwear of his dreams is a pair of radioactive-green briefs with a Frankenstein face on the front, the green color standing out all the more due to Brown’s choice to do the entire book in grayscale save for the underwear’s glowing green…and glow they do, as Jasper soon discovers. Despite his “I’m a big rabbit” assertion, that glow creeps him out, so he stuffs them in the hamper and dons Plain White. In the morning, though, he’s wearing green! He goes to increasing lengths to get rid of the glowing menace, but they don’t stay gone. It’s only when Jasper finally admits to himself that maybe he’s not such a big rabbit after all that he thinks of a clever solution to his fear of the dark. Brown’s illustrations keep the backgrounds and details simple so readers focus on Jasper’s every emotion, writ large on his expressive face. And careful observers will note that the underwear’s expression also changes, adding a bit more creep to the tale.
Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with Dr. Seuss’ tale of animate, empty pants. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0298-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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