Well-intentioned, though not well-thought-through. Tum’s not worth your time.
Kitty cat (and human boy stand-in) Tumford Stoutt learns a lesson about rude noises.
This Tuesday, Sweet Apple Green is in for a ruckus. Tum beats his drum. He makes bubbles in his dish. He burps and giggles at the table. His parents aren’t pleased, but Tum doesn’t care. He likes the attention. Then in front of the Sweet Apple Guild, Tum does the unforgivable: toots the patootie trumpet. Mom and Dad put him in timeout. With a little help from readers, Tum learns not all attention is good. Tumford’s second didactic tale suffers many of the same problems of his first. Thankfully, his strange and disturbing clothes are gone (save for a bandanna). However, the equally distressing, clunky, forced-rhyme verse is still in evidence, as well as the previous book's illogic. Young audiences will scratch their heads over Tum eating from a bowl on the floor and then a plate at the table. Their parents will wonder why the lesson isn’t “don’t be rude” or “apologize for rudeness” (which we thought we learned in Tumford the Terrible, 2011), but is instead: Public displays of gas lead to punishment. Tillman’s precious illustrations mesh better with her treacly, sentiment-laden titles than with this practical lesson in etiquette.
Well-intentioned, though not well-thought-through. Tum’s not worth your time. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-312-36841-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Whether spoken by a dinosaur or a human, this parental message clearly radiates “I’ve loved you from the start.”
The cover’s glowing golden stars are but a small hint of the parent-child love inside.
In this companion book to the creators’ I Love You, My Little Unicorn (2022), a world full of digitally created dinosaurs illustrated in eye-catching colors dominates the pages. From the start, it’s clear that dinosaur parents have the same hopes and dreams for their offspring that human parents do. Readers don’t have to be dinosaur fans to smile when the parent-and-child dinosaur pairs playfully interact and share loving glances. Take special note of the ankylosauruses, whose tails arc to form a heart beneath a sky filled with heart-shaped clouds. The text in verse shares words of unconditional parental love and support and wisdom (“please remember all these things / that I want you to know”), appropriate for humans and dinos alike. “Roar with all your might!” “Spread your wings and fly.” “Use your voice, and ask for help.” There’s even a caveat that some “days will be dark / and other shades of gray.” But “there’s always brightness up ahead.” While the loving sentiments in the storytelling are clear, words are sometimes inverted to make the rhyme work, and the verse doesn’t always follow a consistent meter, but prereading will let the story shine during quiet snuggle times.
Whether spoken by a dinosaur or a human, this parental message clearly radiates “I’ve loved you from the start.” (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781728268361
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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