This muddled effort tries hard to be cute and clever, but it doesn’t stand out among the many excellent choices available...
The Nativity story is retold from the viewpoint of helpful snowman-shaped angels.
The story opens with the Snow Angels in the sky over the town of Nazareth, pouring buckets of snowballs from the sky. Mary and Joseph travel to Bethlehem with the help of the Snow Angels. The Snow Angels pack for the trip, wash the donkey, and shovel the deep snow on the road. They prepare the stable in Bethlehem and are the first visitors to see baby Jesus, and they alert the shepherds and the wise men of the baby’s arrival. While the basic elements of the traditional Nativity story are included, the prominent role of the Snow Angels is rather confusing, as they seem to be the main characters in the story, driving the plot. The characters of Mary and Joseph are also problematic, as the illustration style makes them look like children, even though Joseph has a beard. All the human characters have pink skin and darker pink cheeks that echo the round, pink cheeks on the Snow Angels. The double-page–spread illustrations are flat and rather amateurish in execution, with awkward stick arms on the Snow Angels and little variation in perspective or in the Snow Angels themselves.
This muddled effort tries hard to be cute and clever, but it doesn’t stand out among the many excellent choices available for Christmas Eve reading. (Picture book/religion. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 20, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-63322-124-6
Page Count: 27
Publisher: Seagrass/Quarto
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2016
A laugh-inducing Halloween read-along.
The Crayons return in time for Halloween as vampire-costumed Purple coaches the dressed-up wax pack through its first trick-or-treating venture.
It takes five houses’ worth of door-knocks for this skeleton crew of seven to perfect the protocol, with enough outlandish flubs to generate giggles in Halloween-savvy preschoolers. At Door No. 1, Orange, dressed as a jack-o’-lantern, says, “Give us your candy, Lady.” At the next, the gang, encouraged by Purple to “think holiday,” responds with an impressive array of misguided greetings, including “Merry Christmas!” and “Happy American Cheese Month!” Later, White, levitating impressively in a ghost costume, overreacts to Halloween’s “scary” aspect by overwhelming residents with a “BOO!” Peach, unnamed here but recognizably wrapperless from the initial title, exuberantly (and inappropriately) repeats, “I’m naked!” Finally, the troupe perfects its treat-inducing line, though a certain ghost cannot resist an ad lib. This excursion, like many of the holiday-themed Crayon books, has a smaller trim size, a lower price point, and far less complexity than Daywalt and Jeffers’ first two Crayon titles. Still, the pair deftly let young children in on the jokes through funny, hand-lettered dialogue and the visually telegraphed, all-in haplessness of this well-branded band. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A laugh-inducing Halloween read-along. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-62102-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
The familiar singsong repetitiveness is catchy in all settings, holiday or otherwise.
A hoppy, snappy Easter version of We’re Going on a Bear Hunt.
Three young tots, with varied skin tones and baskets ready in their hands, eagerly scamper on a spring day to find some eggs. But of course, they meet hindrances along the way. “Ooh, look … // Chickens! / Flapping, pecking chickens.” Thus starts the rolling refrain: “Can’t go over them. / Can’t go under them. / Can’t go around them. // Got to go through them!” The waddling chickens don’t pose much of an obstacle, but they do “Cluck-cluck!” loudly as they scatter in the sun. The three youngsters then must face “fluffy, hungry bunnies” (adorable long-eared puffballs with carrot fronds in their mouths) and “happy, hopping frogs” as they balance on stones to cross a pond. All of this leads to a garden bursting with colorful flowers (“Rustle-swish! / Rustle-swish!”) and finally…10 eggs in pastel patterns. Each egg has a number on it to encourage readers to count along and strengthen their numeracy skills. Rozelaar’s plump and rounded world, with roly-poly trees, flowers, and hills, wraps the tale in coziness.
The familiar singsong repetitiveness is catchy in all settings, holiday or otherwise. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9798887771304
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
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