Just pure, wooly-headed fun.
A passel of sheep, who vaguely resemble characters from the titular movie, are quietly grazing on the hillside when they are startled by a loud noise overhead.
Their curiosity piqued, they skip to the hilltop and spy an air race about to begin, complete with men in goggles and a brass band. The sheep can’t resist the urge to check out a bright yellow airplane standing nearby. One thing leads to another, and soon, the eight sheep find themselves squished into the tiny cockpit, soaring above the fields, swerving, swooping and looping with gay abandon. Their wild aerial journey takes them on fantastical, if somewhat stereotyped, adventures all over the world. They can-can in France, flamenco in Spain, encounter a Yeti in Tibet, are (politically incorrectly) offered mutton curry in India and are threatened by crocs in Florida. Suddenly homesick, the errant sheep fly home and are grazing on their familiar hillside before the chap who owns the plane can guess the identity of the “thieves in white sweaters” who stole it. This lighthearted romp, full of jokey references to an almost 50-year-old movie, will amuse young readers who are not bothered by logistical improbability. The seamless melding of Bently’s catchy British doggerel with Roberts’ elegant colored-pencil–and-watercolor illustrations makes this an attractive choice.
Just pure, wooly-headed fun. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4677-4935-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Andersen Press USA
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.
A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.
He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts. When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends.
Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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