Not much happens, but it’s gorgeous to look at.
A dog muses about a peaceful day in the garden with a favorite human.
Narrated from the point of view of the dog, this gentle story has peace and soothing ambiance on its side. What it does not have, however, is a riveting storyline. Dutch, the dog, pretends to be asleep as the titular gardener, a young woman (illustrated with pale skin and red hair), goes down to her breakfast. When she calls the dog (this is why Dutch pretends to be asleep, the dog tells readers, to hear her “gentle voice” calling), they go outside together. There, the young woman begins to work in her garden while Dutch observes. The young woman digs garden beds (the dog approves), they rest, Dutch plays with the water hose, they go home at twilight. Where the narrative lacks pizzazz, however, the illustrations are another story. Luscious, rich depth of color and effective visual design combine with a delicate play of light and shadow to create a serene, calming atmosphere all on its own, without any words. Light-filled indoor and outdoor scenes of the sunniest complementary colors are joyous in their combinations of patterns. The illustrations prioritize the dog's viewpoint; a few show the dog prominently while the woman's torso, but not head, is shown—a clever tactic to keep the illustrative focus on the doggy perspective. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8.3-by-16.6-inch double-page spreads viewed at 40% of actual size.)
Not much happens, but it’s gorgeous to look at. (Picture book. 3-10)Pub Date: April 6, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77306-256-3
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books.
Curious about the Big Wide World outside his Sasquatch community, Hugo makes a friend who is of it.
Sasquatch Hugo’s bedroom is inside a cave and possesses the charming feature of a small stream running through it that he can sail his little toy boat on. It’s cool, but he yearns to see the Big Wide World. When he asks his smart friend Gigi if a Sasquatch might become a sailor, she says it’s possible but would be difficult—the primary rule of their people is to not be seen by Humans. Then, in everyone’s favorite Hide and Go Sneak class, which is held outside, a Human appears; Hugo laughs at the sight, drawing Human attention in a taboo-breaking mistake. Shortly after, Hugo’s toy boat floats into the cave with a Human toy—soon, it’s facilitating a pen-pal–type relationship that’s derailed when Hugo confesses to being a Sasquatch and Human Boone, a budding cryptozoologist, doesn’t believe him. How Hugo and Boone resolve this misapprehension and become friends in a joint search for the Ogopogo concludes this series opener. Potter keeps the third-person narrative tightly focused on Hugo’s perspective, and the details she uses to flesh out the Sasquatch world are delightfully playful. Sala’s drawings depict a homey Sasquatch cavern community, Boone as a freckled, white boy, and Hugo as a hairily benevolent behemoth.
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books. (final art unseen) (Fantasy. 5-9)Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2859-4
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
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