Brisk and bright, yet subtle in its message.
What can little creatures do to protect themselves from the forest bully?
The scary Snorklum, who has long tan fur and striped purple horns, is so worried about getting to his cave before dark that his crinkly whiskers begin to wibble. He sees Mole standing near a tree and picks him up with thoughts of having a Mole sandwich. Mole’s response to Snorklum’s scary roar is, “Why are your whiskers wibbling…?” Frustrated, Snorklum sticks Mole in his pocket, figuring he’ll eat him later. Down the road, he spies Rabbit and decides that a Rabbit pie would taste better than a Mole sandwich. He tries to scare Rabbit, but the same thing happens; Snorklum stuffs Rabbit into his shoulder bag and continues on his way. Next he encounters Badger (perfect for Badger stew), but he just can’t scare him either. Snorklum does stare the leaves off the trees and make the birds scatter, but the animals just stare at him; they know a secret: “If a scary Snorklum stays out after dark...” With a POOOFFT, the scary Snorklum, with a strangled cry, shrinks to the size of an insect. And no one, not even the birds, is afraid. Chapman’s Snorklum, cousin, perhaps, to Bert Lahr’s Cowardly Lion, is appropriately goofy, and her backgrounds go through many colors, from gold of late afternoon to dark-blue night.
Brisk and bright, yet subtle in its message. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-56148-728-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Good Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Will give children the emotional distance to process their own first-day jitters.
Everyone’s nervous about going to school—even your backpack!
After months of relaxing in the closet over the summer, a green backpack quivers with nerves when it hears the words back to school. The backpack has to be pried from the closet by a light-skinned child with a blond ponytail. Going to school is, we learn, a far more terrifying prospect for a backpack. “First you open my mouth and shove a bunch of strange new books and binders down my throat.” Slung over the child’s shoulders, the backpack “can’t even see where I’m going.” At school, the backpack is smashed, stuffed, and dragged. But the worst part of school is that the backpack doesn’t seem to fit in anywhere—a feeling that will be familiar to many readers. All that changes when it crashes into another backpack worn by a child with dark skin, short curly hair, and glasses. The punny moral of the story? Life is better with a friend “because you don’t have to carry everything alone.” This funny romp will leave readers feeling empowered for their own first days. Strategically placed black pages with white lettering ramp up the drama. In Toro’s exaggerated cartoon illustrations, the backpack is wonderfully expressive, its eyes and zipper mouth conveying panic, nausea, a longing to belong, and, finally, happiness. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Will give children the emotional distance to process their own first-day jitters. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9780316628341
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: April 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A smartly wrought allegory for what happens when we give our secrets power over us (and how to take that power back).
In this cautionary tale, Bothe brings to vibrant life the allure and alarm of keeping a not-so-nice secret.
Unlike the other kids at school, Ellie loves it when recess is rained out; she enjoys the opportunity to sift for treasures in the classroom sandbox. While doing so one day, she discovers a perfect little cowrie shell; in a fit of greed, she takes it. When she examines it later, an odd creature crawls out of the shell, introducing itself as her Secret. Initially, Ellie is charmed and begins lugging the Secret around like an oversize puppy wherever she goes. As the day progresses, however, the Secret increases in size, crowding Ellie out of her own life. A metaphor for hurtful secrets, the creature is simultaneously endearing and malicious, initially peering up from inside the stolen shell in a nicely nightmarish fashion. Though the Secret has some qualities in keeping with the dragons of Eastern mythology, its long wormlike body twisting and curling around Ellie, it is clearly a product of the creator’s imagination. Alas, the narrative, which proceeds at an even pace throughout, comes to an abrupt ending once Ellie confesses her crime; still, on the whole, this empathetic and cleverly imagined tale will resonate with anyone who’s been in Ellie’s situation. The protagonist presents white; her classmates are diverse.
A smartly wrought allegory for what happens when we give our secrets power over us (and how to take that power back). (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 19, 2025
ISBN: 9780063373150
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2025
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