Enjoyably old-fashioned tales with charm, wit, and an appreciation of kindness.
An elephant searches for a hat to make him special and a cat meets a bird missing his head feathers in these two read-aloud children’s stories.
Squirrel Hill (not the Pittsburgh neighborhood) is a farmhouse in the country. Madison, the young girl who lives there, has several walking, talking plush-toy animals. Other farmyard and wild animals also speak and behave in some human ways. In “Just an Ordinary Elephant,” Perfesser is a self-important goose who proclaims that there’s nothing special about Ellie, a stuffed elephant, because he’s unlike African elephants, who have ears that “always stick straight out….And they always wear straw hats.” Ellie overhears this and—his dignity wounded—decides he must emulate African elephants. Though Madison knows that Ellie is indeed special, being polite, kind, and generous, he’ll have to learn this for himself. In “The Bald Cardinal,” the cat Kitty certainly doesn’t lack confidence, knowing herself to be “brainy, gorgeous, and curious.” She meets a bald cardinal whose condition is a problem: “I cannot find anyone who will talk with me without staring at my head and tweeting all their friends.” But Kitty reassures him he’s very handsome, “and…when he really thought about it, a cat should know.” Though Kitty, like Ellie, performs a kind act, she decides—catlike—to keep it to herself and to never do it again. Clark (Crossing Briar Woo, 2018, etc.) follows up his first outing in this series with two tales (aimed at children ages 4 to 7) that are less focused on Madison and more on the animal denizens of Squirrel Hill. Each one has something to say about self-acceptance, but neither is overly preachy. Instead, gentle humor and good characterization make for amusing scenarios, as when Ellie, offered assistance by Esther Marie Rabbit, “did not say ‘thank you.’ He was trying very hard to be special and he forgot.” The second story is slighter, but Kitty’s zest enlivens it. Driver’s (Crossing Briar Woo, 2018, etc.) attractively detailed pencil-and-wash illustrations bring out the characters’ expressions and personalities, skillfully distinguishing between real and stuffed animals.
Enjoyably old-fashioned tales with charm, wit, and an appreciation of kindness.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-72323-089-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Ozymandias Publishing Co.
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
