A solid once-over, with systematic digital enhancements that will draw a buzz from newly independent readers.
A tap-happy reader’s dream guide to common insects—presented by Thing 1 and Thing 2 with the Cat in the Hat as impresario.
The index and reading list of the 1999 print edition have been dropped, but the rhymed text and Seuss-style pictures remain—and there’s lots going on. Touching well-nigh all of the figures, features, objects, items of clothing, trees or flowers whenever they appear on any screen results in both visual and voiced labels. Along with lots of tiny bugs that fly and hover on their own, many of the larger figures will also trail a moving fingertip. Likewise, tapping any word triggers a pronunciation, even with the “Read It Myself” option selected; tapping bolded words brings up a definition to boot. The six-legged cast includes black ants, caterpillars and butterflies, crickets, flies, mosquitoes, ladybugs, praying mantises, grasshoppers and other widely distributed insect types, with cameos from spiders and other predators. Terms like “thorax” and “pollination” kick up the level of detail in discussions of insect behavior, defenses and diversity. Though the overstimulated narrator, a lad in the illustrations who is loudly identified as “Dick!” whenever he’s tapped, and a text that, on some screens, appears piecemeal may distract less-focused students, this introduction to the insect realm is as functional as it is fun.
A solid once-over, with systematic digital enhancements that will draw a buzz from newly independent readers. (iPad informational app. 5-8)Pub Date: April 29, 2013
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Oceanhouse Media
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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