Pass.
In this guess-who’s-knocking title, the clues are either too vague or too easy, the story is slight, and the illustrations are a tad pedestrian.
Set in a wintry clime at night, some things knock four separate times on Bear’s door. They each beckon to him. The first calls, “Boo!” A turn of the page reveals what Bear guesses is outside. On those pages, the illustration does not entirely fill the page but has the rounded border of a thought balloon. A ghost, an ogre, the “big bad wolf” and a “wicked witch” each demand to be let in. Readers witness poor Bear becoming increasingly frightened as the mysterious voices persist. Is his imagination getting the best of him, or is he right to be so cautious? The last rapping on the door, however, results in Bear declaring, “Go away! I do not open the door to strangers.” To his relief it is not a stranger but his tiny friend, Archibald. Bear is so happy to see his pal, he wipes the sweat off his brow and smiles. But then Archibald announces a surprise for Bear. He has brought the exact same scary creatures Bear was worrying about to dinner. Though Goossens attempts to create an interactive guessing game for readers and perhaps deliver a message of caution to not trust strangers, it fails to coalesce into an engaging read.
Pass. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-7358-4122-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: NorthSouth
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2013
The kimonos in this title are shown on “creative” (non-traditional) Kokeshi that have evolved from their origins as stickers...
Kokeshi, northern Japanese wooden folk dolls, are painted with differently designed kimonos that denote the area in which they are made and form the inspiration for this pretty novelty.
The kimonos in this title are shown on “creative” (non-traditional) Kokeshi that have evolved from their origins as stickers in France. (Their images are also produced on notecards and journals.) A stilted text, translated from French, accompanies these commercialized, cartoon-like images. The glossy, heavy stock, saturated with a sophisticated palette of black, brown, maroon, bluish-gray and green, teems with kawaii kokeshi— “super cute little wooden dolls”—who talk and act like contemporary little girls. Readers are invited to find the right sash, fan and hair bow to match Kimiyo’s outfit. They locate Yumi’s apartment by lifting the flap that matches her sash. A large gate-fold page reveals Yumi’s family members and another game that involves matching designs to determine her maternal and paternal families. A schoolroom scene shows the days of the week, both in transliteration and in Japanese characters. There are more words to learn when a star (hoshi), a rabbit (usagi) and a pair of socks (tabi), among other objects, serve as inspiration for funny hairstyles that appear when a die-cut page turns.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4521-0493-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
Devoid of energy, but greeting-card pretty.
A candy-colored version of the classic tale completely lacks teeth and claws.
The three little pigs’ widowed mother sends them out into the world to make their way. The first, carrying his guitar on his back, begs a kind man for the straw he carries and builds himself a nice little house. The wolf comes by, the predictable conversation ensues and the piggy escapes. The second pig carries his brushes and papers, asks a kind man for some sticks and builds a place with an easel en plein air. The house has a convenient back door, so he too escapes when the wolf does his thing. The third pig, carrying his tools, is clearly into construction; his carefully built brick house (bricks a gift of a third kind man) is gorgeous. The wolf tries the chimney, is smoked out and runs away, the third pig collects his mom and siblings and they live happily ever after. Sunny colors and lots of cute details make for pleasant page-turning: Pig number two sits reading a version of Little Red Riding Hood in the last scene, possibly trying to track down the latest venue of the wolf.
Devoid of energy, but greeting-card pretty. (Picture book/fairy tale. 4-6)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-7358-4058-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: NorthSouth
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011
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