by Neil Gaiman ; illustrated by Adam Rex ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2015
Nonetheless, fans will delight and pass the tissue, as the aviator-goggle–wearing panda pleases with most of his sneezes.
Gaiman and Rex return with Chu’s third picture book, sending the sneeze-happy panda cub to visit the surf and sand.
Big things happen when little Chu sneezes—especially at the beach. When Chu and his family first arrive, all is peachy. Chu’s mother sits and reads, while Chu’s father wades in the water. A bespectacled octopus offers Chu a refreshing ice cream cone to beat the heat. Soon Chu, decked out in a striped, retro-style full-body swimsuit, takes off his sunglasses. In the sunlight, his nose starts to tickle, a tickling that “fill[s] his whole head.” Fans of the Chu books will know what comes next and will sneeze right along with him. With the big deed done, the unthinkable happens. The sea is split, the waves stopping Exodus-like, and it’s up to Chu to sneeze again so he can save the stuck sea animals. Alas, sneezing on cue isn’t so easy. Rex’s comical and lively illustrations are enchanting gems. These include a family of merpandas, a gopher carrying his surfboard and chill amphibians sunning themselves. Chu’s charm and silliness abound throughout this sneezefest. However, his final ah-choo doesn’t provide the kind of satisfaction a just-expelled sneeze can give. That’s because Chu doesn’t come up with the solution himself.
Nonetheless, fans will delight and pass the tissue, as the aviator-goggle–wearing panda pleases with most of his sneezes. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 21, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-222399-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2015
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by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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by Phil Rosenthal & Lily Rosenthal ; illustrated by Luke Flowers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts.
With one taste of despised mustard, a child pivots from rejecting new foods to seeking them.
Dad takes Lil to a food truck festival. Lil, who narrates the story, is nervous; this child’s list of acceptable foods is short (pizza, rice, grilled cheese, french fries, and vanilla ice cream). Dad loves varied tastes and repeatedly reminds Lil of his rule: “Just try it!” With a “YECCCH!” or an “EWWWWWW!” Lil refuses a bagel loaded with toppings, linguini with clams, Peking duck, pizza with spinach and garlic, and a pretzel covered with Lil’s most hated of foods: mustard. Frustrated, Lil accidentally knocks the pretzel onto Dad’s shirt. Lil apologizes, takes a lick of mustard…and instantly learns to appreciate every rejected offering. Lil then uses the title mantra to pressure Dad onto a nausea-inducing roller-coaster ride. Bright, cartoon-style illustrations emphasize the pair's upbeat mood. Food neophobia, or an aversion to eating anything novel, has complex psychosocial roots. But in this blithe little fable, the child’s resistance is completely overcome with a single accidental exposure, and the formerly picky eater immediately becomes a novelty seeker. The turnaround here is implausible; if this book creates any expectations of a sudden dramatic change in a child’s behavior, that would be a disservice. Both Dad and Lil are light-skinned.
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781665942638
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
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