by Nancy Carlson & illustrated by Nancy Carlson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2002
In another of her unself-consciously oddball joys, Carlson (How About a Hug?, 2001, etc.) suggests that when life sends a downbeat in your direction you should put on a smile. Simply lifting the corners of your mouth is “easier than complaining,” notes the frog narrator of this upbeat undertaking. In a text that is a model of easy communication, the frog notes that a smile can win friends, confound bullies, and soften the hard times. A little ingenuity never hurt, either, as when you get oatmeal with prunes for breakfast: Smile, ask Mom if you can help her make chocolate chip pancakes tomorrow, and then feed the oatmeal and prunes to your baby sister when Mom is busy elsewhere. In artwork that is all elbows and charm and a bellyful of color, Carlson makes an undeniable case for grins over grumps. And if the frog’s smile looks a little strained at times, understand that taking the high road requires some effort, but it sure is worth it. Carlson knows how to make dry humor work for three-year-olds. Try that neat trick some time. It makes smiling down the bullies seem like child’s play. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-87614-869-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Carolrhoda
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2002
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by Loren Long & illustrated by Loren Long ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2009
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
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by Loren Long ; illustrated by Loren Long
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SEEN & HEARD
by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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