A charming traditional fable with a mixed takeaway about self-reliance.
A matchmaking swan finds a mate only after he has realized his own mission gives him self-worth in this original fable.
The animals of Meadow Fields are excited about the big dance to celebrate the birth of peachicks. But while almost all the animals have a partner, one stands alone: Cob Cobblepot, the swan matchmaker. Wanting to help their lonely matchmaker find a mate, the animals all suggest possibilities. Grumpy Frog introduces Cob to a fly, and Mrs. Field Mouse sets him up on a blind date with a crepuscular animal. Cob tries speed dating, online dating, and local meetups—all to no avail. Finally, Cob realizes he is happy to be part of others’ stories. As he looks at the other animal couples, “his heart was filled with joy that he had played the part as an agent to their unions.” The constellation Cygnus rewards Cob’s good heart with a perfect match, formed from a star. The moral here—appreciating one’s own self-worth is more important than finding a romantic partner—is eclipsed by this particular happy ending, but the fairy-tale nature of the story shines through, making it feel at once fresh and familiar. Debut author Law’s language is similarly old-fashioned, evoking the tone of classic tales with challenging vocabulary words for newly independent readers (celestial, simultaneously). For much of the book, the digital illustrations take on a muted hue, with characters that mix some human traits and animal bodies, but the designs are inconsistent, and the lack of clear linework leads characters to blend in with their backgrounds.
A charming traditional fable with a mixed takeaway about self-reliance.Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2022
ISBN: 9780578283098
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Peabody Law Publishing
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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