A rescue tale offers gorgeous paintings of animal characters and some awkward narration.
A courageous cat saves a bunny from a sinister feline in this short stories series opener.
TORC, a long-furred, black-and-white house cat, dreams of a bigger world. But an adventure is happening right outside his door: Greedy Tom is threatening a baby bunny. TORC hurries to the rescue (an action shot of the two cats shows the otherwise realistic-looking hero in a flying kung fu pose). Using untagged dialogue, Nona (TORC the CAT Discovers North America Part 1, 2019) switches from TORC’s narration to Greedy Tom’s, detailing their ongoing rivalry and delivering a melodramatic, clichéd promise: “You foiled me again, but we will meet again!” Once Greedy Tom leaves, TORC provides the bunny with a name, Mr. Lucky, and introduces him to some local rabbits, who adopt him. Because the narration is presented in the first person, but the perspective switches multiple times without the text indicating the speaker, newly independent readers may be baffled by the structure. For lap readers, the fun tale, with grown-ups supplying distinctive voices, presents a clear hero and a dastardly villain, along with an adorable bunny to be saved. (The hero is now the star of two picture-book series: TORC Discoveries and TORC the CAT short stories.) Nona’s realistic, painterly illustrations capture TORC’s expressions and movements perfectly, and interactions with the cute bunny are sure to be appreciated by young animal lovers. An afterword tells the true story behind this yarn.
A rescue tale offers gorgeous paintings of animal characters and some awkward narration.Pub Date: July 31, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-73279-174-9
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Nona Design LLC
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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