Text and pictures burst with energy as a “toy box volcano” erupts and tosses Beo and her stuffed animals everywhere. One swings from a curtain; one grasps a blanket thread which is slowly unraveling. “And Beo (let’s whisper so’s not to distress her) / Had a teetery toehold on top of the dresser.” They work together to get down safely. One vanishes briefly (having slid inadvertently into the underwear drawer) and a rope of multicolored tights is hurled across the room for rescue purposes. Dickens’s tricky rhythm and rhyme are challenging but offer supreme satisfaction. The words themselves dance across the pages, tilting and curving in high spirits, changing size and color. Ross’s acrylic, collage and watercolor-pencil illustrations are mostly full-page close-ups, conveying the precarious mood and details but not the overall setup. White space on facing pages perfectly balances the pictures’ chaos. When everyone’s down, a joyful dance and a quest for lunch. If only toy-box volcanoes erupted everywhere. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: April 30, 2005
ISBN: 1-55143-325-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2005
A serviceable introduction to sleuthing for more fluent readers who are almost ready for early chapter books.
Archer (of the Urgency Emergency! series) takes on the mystery genre in her new Detective Paw of the Law series.
Dream team Detective Paw (an old dog) and Patrol Officer Prickles (a young porcupine) sure love solving crime together—even when it’s hard. Early one Monday morning at Big City Police Headquarters, a call interrupts Detective Paw’s doughnut breakfast. Someone has robbed Piggy’s Bank! With notebook, pencil, and magnifying glass in hand, Detective Paw speeds to the scene of the crime in his Vintagemobile. The first to greet Detective Paw is Patrol Officer Prickles, who uses his “electronic notepad” to present the existing evidence. Detective Paw individually interviews the bank employees and cross-checks their alibis. Since the safe isn’t broken, only someone with the keys to unlock it could be the culprit. But who? Divided into four chapters, the step-by-step story logically follows the detective’s thought process as readers crack the case alongside him. Though there can be up to 16 lines per page, ample leading helps give the text a spacious feel. Archer’s mix of colorful full-page and spot illustrations aids in decoding more complex sentences. Her expressive, cartoony character design delightfully accentuates comedic moments. The Case of The Stolen Drumsticks, which is different in plot but identical in formula, publishes simultaneously.
A serviceable introduction to sleuthing for more fluent readers who are almost ready for early chapter books. (Early reader/mystery. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-8075-1557-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Whitman
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
This school story for Christmas has a narrower audience than it depicts.
Is Jack’s substitute teacher really Kris Kringle incognito?
Young Jack, who appears to be a child of color with light brown skin and straight, black hair, is wishing for snow. Kids in his class think that all of their wishes will come true when they notice that their substitute teacher, Mr. Clausen, has a lot in common with Santa Claus. He appears white with light skin and curly white hair, including a full beard. Beyond his physical appearance, he also: has a fondness for milk and cookies; wears a red shirt, green pants, and black boots; has a big laugh that “sounded a lot like a ‘ho, ho, ho’ ”; knits stockings; makes lists; and uses a sled as a prop in science class. The titular “ho ho homework” is an assignment for the kids to make paper snowflakes and write their wishes on them. Jack is at first reluctant to do this because he is dubious about whether or not Mr. Clausen is, in fact, Santa Claus, but he ultimately does so, and he and “the whole neighborhood” wake to a white Christmas. The colorful, digitally enhanced watercolor art has an aesthetic that Tomie dePaola fans will recognize and enjoy. It depicts an apparently racially diverse classroom, but the children all seem to be united in a belief in Santa Claus, which feels unlikely.
This school story for Christmas has a narrower audience than it depicts. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-279688-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019
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