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LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD

Name: LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD
Author: Nosy Crow

developed by Nosy Crow ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 25, 2013

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A retelling of the familiar fairy tale, Nosy Crow’s newest app has the appearance of a graphic novel and offers a fresh new twist in the storyline.

Portrayed as brave and capable, Red Riding Hood heads through the forest, where readers help her navigate forks and the path. Each path leads to a different game and subsequent variation in the story. Instead of simply being distractions embedded in the app, each game is integral to the story and encourages readers to carry on through to the end, where the various items gathered prove useful in dispatching the wolf. Interactions are smooth and infused with humor. The 3-D effect and zoom capability add depth to the illustrations, and a map is provided as a shortcut to the games. Game features include tilting to pour honey and to move a spider around a maze, blowing seeds from a dandelion, readers’ own reflections in a pool and many touch-screen games. The characters, narrated superbly by child actors, speak to each other when tapped. Unfortunately, conversations get a bit out of whack if not tapped in the correct order, but eventually, all becomes clear. In “Read and Play” mode, words are highlighted as they are read out loud, and blue dots blink to help readers find interactions on each page.

Well-crafted and fun to read, this is an empowered “Red Riding Hood” not to miss. (iPad storybook app. 4-7)

Pub Date: April 25, 2013

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Nosy Crow

Review Posted Online: June 15, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2013

- BOOK REVIEW
LOIS LOOKS FOR BOB AT THE BEACH
by Nosy Crow ; illustrated by Gerry Turley

- BOOK REVIEW
FIRST WORDS
by Nosy Crow ; illustrated by The Trustees of the British Museum

- BOOK REVIEW
LOIS LOOKS FOR BOB AT HOME
by Nosy Crow ; illustrated by Gerry Turley

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HOW TO CATCH THE EASTER BUNNY

From the How To Catch… series

by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2017

This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers.

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The bestselling series (How to Catch an Elf, 2016, etc.) about capturing mythical creatures continues with a story about various ways to catch the Easter Bunny as it makes its annual deliveries.

The bunny narrates its own story in rhyming text, beginning with an introduction at its office in a manufacturing facility that creates Easter eggs and candy. The rabbit then abruptly takes off on its delivery route with a tiny basket of eggs strapped to its back, immediately encountering a trap with carrots and a box propped up with a stick. The narrative focuses on how the Easter Bunny avoids increasingly complex traps set up to catch him with no explanation as to who has set the traps or why. These traps include an underground tunnel, a fluorescent dance floor with a hidden pit of carrots, a robot bunny, pirates on an island, and a cannon that shoots candy fish, as well as some sort of locked, hazardous site with radiation danger. Readers of previous books in the series will understand the premise, but others will be confused by the rabbit’s frenetic escapades. Cartoon-style illustrations have a 1960s vibe, with a slightly scary, bow-tied bunny with chartreuse eyes and a glowing palette of neon shades that shout for attention.

This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-4926-3817-9

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Review Posted Online: Jan. 16, 2017

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH A GARDEN GNOME
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton & Leo Trinidad

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH BIGFOOT
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH AN INVISIBLE BAD GUY
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

- BOOK REVIEW
A VERY DINOSAUR BIRTHDAY
by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Christopher Nielsen

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH A GINGERBREAD MAN
by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH A DRAGON
by Adam Wallace ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

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THE CRAYONS GO BACK TO SCHOOL

by Drew Daywalt ; illustrated by Oliver Jeffers ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 16, 2023

Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings.

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The Crayons head back to class in this latest series entry.

Daywalt’s expository text lays out the basics as various Crayons wave goodbye to the beach, choose a first-day outfit, greet old friends, and make new ones. As in previous outings, the perennially droll illustrations and hand-lettered Crayon-speak drive the humor. The ever wrapperless Peach, opining, “What am I going to wear?” surveys three options: top hat and tails, a chef’s toque and apron, and a Santa suit. New friends Chunky Toddler Crayon (who’s missing a bite-sized bit of their blue point) and Husky Toddler Crayon speculate excitedly on their common last name: “I wonder if we’re related!” White Crayon, all but disappearing against the page’s copious white space, sits cross-legged reading a copy of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man. And Yellow and Orange, notable for their previous existential argument about the color of the sun, find agreement in science class: Jupiter, clearly, is yellow AND orange. Everybody’s excited about art class—“Even if they make a mess. Actually…ESPECIALLY if they make a mess!” Here, a spread of crayoned doodles of butterflies, hearts, and stars is followed by one with fulsome scribbles. Fans of previous outings will spot cameos from Glow in the Dark and yellow-caped Esteban (the Crayon formerly known as Pea Green). (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings. (Picture book. 4-6)