A sweet animal tale about aiding others.
In Shadrick’s rhyming picture book, a forgetful elephant loses his way.
Emory is an older pachyderm living in a forest. While out for a walk one day, he finds that he can’t remember how to get home. A parrot asks if Emory needs help, and after the elephant admits that he might be lost, the bird says, “I’m happy to help you find your way. Just tell me, where did you come from? And I’ll have you home by the end of the day.” The parrot doesn’t recognize Emory’s description of his home, but offers to bring him to see a wise frog friend. The pair cross a river to reach the amphibian, who leads them to Emory’s herd. The other elephants thank the parrot and frog and invite them to celebrate Emory’s return: “We welcome you as guests and friends. You have been patient and generous, and this tale has come to a joyful end.” It’s not explicitly clear whether Emory has age-related memory loss or a more serious condition, but he’s never shown to be in real danger. This aspect also doesn’t detract from the cheerful, effective message to readers to “lend a helping hand” whenever they can. Letcher’s watercolor-style cartoon illustrations will be a big draw; the stubby-trunked elephants’ faces are especially expressive and endearing.
A sweet animal tale about aiding others.Pub Date: June 30, 2025
ISBN: 9798991234078
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: June 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
The runaway cookie in this Mexican bakery is a soft, brown, stubby-tailed piglet as impertinently bold and smug in his continual escape as his Gingerbread Boy cousin. “Chase me! Chase me down the street. But this is one piggy you won’t get to eat! / ¡Córrele, córrele! ¡Y Córrele más! ¡Soy el cochinito que jamás comerás!” This bouncy dual refrain extends the familiar cumulative text, rendered in both English and Spanish, as piggy manages to elude Marta the baker, Lorenzo the mechanic, Mamá Nita the beautician, Joaquín the telephone repairman and a host of other neighborhood adults—until he is outsmarted by Rosa, a little girl on her way to school, who foxily “helps him” cross the street. Safely tucked into her backpack, piggy is both a welcome surprise and an excuse for Rosa’s lateness to class. Deep opaque acrylic paintings of a colorful barrio and its residents in pursuit add the right amount of cultural flavor to this vivid Latino retelling. Recipe appended. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: Nov. 30, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-55885-586-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Piñata Books/Arte Público
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2010
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