Here’s hoping this is not Squeak’s only adventure
This simple early reader explores all the things Squeak likes in his house, the kitchen of a (mostly) unsuspecting human family.
Schories’ visual humor makes this slight story of just 18 words into a satisfying and complete adventure. New readers will gain confidence as Squeak navigates his house and words are repeated using the same sentence pattern introduced in the title. The only change is in the article-adjective-noun phrases that provide details of how the mouse uses familiar objects—toys, shoes, the dog’s water bowl, and snacks—provided by the unsuspecting humans who share his house. Bibliophiles will especially appreciate that “Squeak the Mouse likes the good books at his house.” The proximity of the mouse to two young children and a dog, all oblivious to the mouse’s activities, lends an air of daring and suspense to the mouse’s explorations of their shared home. Interjection of the mouse’s “Squeak” as he scurries about the kitchen and the chaos produced when one of the children (both present white) trips and spills her snack of nuts and raisins add both humor and excitement. Picture-book readers will delight in finding the mouse on each spread. Schories’ gentle humor and quick, clever mouse reminiscent of Arnold Lobel’s classic Mouse Tales (1972) should prove equally enduring and effective as both story and reading lesson.
Here’s hoping this is not Squeak’s only adventure . (Early reader/picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: Oct. 23, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3943-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
Familiarity breeds a birthday for the ages in this party worth attending.
Don’t let the Pigeon ruin his own special day!
Anyone who has ever encountered the title character in any of his books—whether his first, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus (2003), or one of its many sequels—will understand that the bird’s innate self-love drives his every interaction. Little wonder, then, that he’s thrilled about his own “bird-day.” He has the hat. He has his “FANCY PLUMAGE.” And, best of all, he will get to blow out a candle “on my bird-day hot dog!” As he revels in the knowledge that this day is all for him, comeuppance is lurking. Someone has already blown out the bird-day candle—and eaten half the hot dog. It turns out that the Pigeon’s frenemy, the Duckling, has the same bird-day—as do a slew of newly hatched chicks. The Pigeon’s obligatory eight-panel freakout ensues. “What am I—invisible? I just want to be seen,” he whimpers, and when he receives some much-needed reassurance, he settles down and willingly shares his special day. While the switch from unapologetic narcissism to mature acceptance happens in the record-breaking span of two pages, the book is as enchanting as the Pigeon’s earlier outings. Even as it walks in the footsteps of its predecessors, there’s no denying the fun to be had.
Familiarity breeds a birthday for the ages in this party worth attending. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 31, 2026
ISBN: 9781454999621
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Nov. 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2026
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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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BOOK REVIEW
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