A simple story with sweet illustrations that make this an easy entry for very young readers.
Muddle the duck is confused as to why friend Mo looks so strange—before finally realizing that Mo is a goat, not a duck.
The illustrations are really what make the book work, and Robinson's softly penciled and highly stylized goats and duck placed on textured blue backgrounds are adorable, with beautifully conveyed personalities. Muddle's expressions are manic and high-energy, while placid Mo's expressions are serene and calm, patiently awaiting the conclusion of Muddle's critique of what a strange duck Mo is. In fact, Mo doesn't even correct the duck—it's only when Muddle hears Mo bleat, and then hears Mo's fellow goats bleat back, that Muddle realizes that Mo is a goat. Muddle is a little cruel about assessing Mo’s inadequacy (Mo’s wings are in the wrong place, Mo’s tail looks weird, and Mo can’t even quack), in a similar vein as such tales as “The Ugly Duckling,” but there's no retributive ending here. Muddle anxiously asks, “Am I a goat?” “You are one hundred percent duck,” says Mo comfortably, and they cuddle up and have a laugh. There's plenty of room here for guardians to encourage kids to reframe weird into just different when observing others.
A simple story with sweet illustrations that make this an easy entry for very young readers. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Feb. 21, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-544-71612-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
More kit than story, with some assembly required.
Two outings and a game of hide-and-seek in between add up to a perfect day for Peppa and friends in this four-spread TV-series spinoff.
First Peppa and her bubble-gum–pink family ride to the park (“Vroom!” says little George) for a healthy picnic packed by Daddy Pig. Then it’s home for playtime with Danny Dog and Suzy Sheep, until Grandpa Pig arrives with a boat big enough for all (“Ship ahoy!”). Children can embellish this stripped-down plotline on the foldout playscape attached to the back cover. All of the figures in the flat, very simple illustrations also come as punch-outs on a loose sheet, and there are corresponding slots in the detachable pop-up car and boat. Fans of the British series, which runs on Nick Jr. in the United States, may experience several moments of pleasure before the card-stock vehicles are crushed.
More kit than story, with some assembly required. (sticker sheet) (Pop-up/picture book. 3-4)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6825-9
Page Count: 8
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Crisp and tart by turns, this is one book worth fighting over.
Prepare to savor this title’s original yet familiar feel.
This rhythmic read features a slew of greedy animals, all with their eyes on a prize. A single red apple hangs at the “tip-tippy top” of a tree, poised to fall at any moment. Its precarious position isn’t missed by the hungry animals below, each determined to make the fruit their own. One by one, a different animal expresses their covetous desires in rhyme (“Mmm-mmm, how divine. / When it tumbles to the ground, / it’ll be all mine”). This is followed immediately by different descriptions of how each animal hides. Mouse “zippety-eeked” beneath a leaf to wait, while Hare “hoppety-boinged,” and fox “waggety-dashed.” Such delicious descriptions make this an ideal read-aloud for large groups, while Rohmann’s art plays up the crew’s wild apple-eating fantasies with a colorful combination of stained paper and relief printmaking. For all this, it’s quite satisfying when the fallen fruit finally ends up in the paws of an opossum, willing to share with a worthy worm. This one has all the trappings of a storytime classic—don’t be surprised when young readers eschew its central message and declare this book itself to be unshareable and definitely “mine!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Crisp and tart by turns, this is one book worth fighting over. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9780593181669
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Anne Schwartz/Random
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
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