A clever idea, but it’s not likely to need more than a one-way ticket.
A locomotive slides along a continuous slot that winds its way through a series of settings.
Instructions on the rear cover are required reading. The journey begins by pushing the small plastic toy parked on the last page through a tunnel in the heavy board leaves to the front. “As sunrise glows red on the bay,” the pinned locomotive can then be pushed along on a looping course to the edge of the page and (with a tricky but, with practice, smooth transition) around the overleaf to a “desert bright with orange clay.” The ride continues across a flat prairie farm, up a green mountainside, down through a twilit town, and past city skyscrapers to a railyard—whereupon the slot loops back around to the beginning. It’s all about the gimmick; aside from a distant rider on a horse in the desert scene, the landscapes are empty of human figures and, being as generic as the accompanying rhyme throughout, much of anything else to look at or for. The engine has no moving parts, nor does it pull any cars, and while it won’t fall out of the slot on its own, little fingers won’t have much trouble pulling it free.
A clever idea, but it’s not likely to need more than a one-way ticket. (Novelty board book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7611-8716-5
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Workman
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
Watching unlikely friends finally be as “happy as two someones can be” feels like being enveloped in your very own hug.
What to do when you’re a prickly animal hankering for a hug? Why, find another misfit animal also searching for an embrace!
Sweet but “tricky to hug” little Hedgehog is down in the dumps. Wandering the forest, Hedgehog begs different animals for hugs, but each rejects them. Readers will giggle at their panicked excuses—an evasive squirrel must suddenly count its three measly acorns; a magpie begins a drawn-out song—but will also be indignant on poor hedgehog’s behalf. Hedgehog has the appealingly pink-cheeked softness typical of Dunbar’s art, and the gentle watercolors are nonthreatening, though she also captures the animals’ genuine concern about being poked. A wise owl counsels the dejected hedgehog that while the prickles may frighten some, “there’s someone for everyone.” That’s when Hedgehog spots a similarly lonely tortoise, rejected due to its “very hard” shell but perfectly matched for a spiky new friend. They race toward each other until the glorious meeting, marked with swoony peach swirls and overjoyed grins. At this point, readers flip the book to hear the same gloomy tale from the tortoise’s perspective until it again culminates in that joyous hug, a book turn that’s made a pleasure with thick creamy paper and solid binding.
Watching unlikely friends finally be as “happy as two someones can be” feels like being enveloped in your very own hug. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-571-34875-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
May try the patience of antsy little ones, though vehicle fans will be delighted.
A cast of critters as impatient as they are colorful yearn for frozen treats.
In a neighborhood occupied by sweet-toothed beasties, the ice cream truck reigns supreme, but a lengthy roster of vehicles must first pass through this animal kingdom—a dump truck, mail truck, and fire truck, to name just a few. Trucks putter through town to onlookers’ delight and disappointment, and spectators bid each one farewell and wish it good luck—all the while dreaming of the delectable goodies to come. Eagle-eyed readers will know when to expect the ice cream truck’s advent, cleverly foreshadowed in the book’s opening spread. While Runyan’s work is pleasing in its simplicity, with characters rendered in bright watercolors and their homes and greenery depicted in appealing collages, Fairbank’s story drags on a shade too long. Though transportation-loving tots will eagerly exclaim over the various vehicles, others will grow frustrated waiting for the titular truck to arrive. Those seeking to incorporate the book into a storytime may want to practice reading this one aloud first, as some of the verses feel a bit clunky.
May try the patience of antsy little ones, though vehicle fans will be delighted. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 29, 2025
ISBN: 9780062842114
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025
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