The simple storylines will make Bonnie Bumble seem like a friend to preschoolers, who no doubt will want to start the week...
This seventh and final tale about Bonnie Bumble completes the series of one story for each day of the week (Thirsty Thursday, 2009, etc.).
“One Sunday on Bonnie Bumble’s farm, snowflakes as big as balls of wool fell.” All of the animals shiver, shake, and stammer from the cold. “This will never d-d-d-do,” says Bonnie, her own teeth chattering. So she gets busy and knits boots for Spot, a scarf for the duck, shawls for the sheep, a coat for the cow, plus tail-warmers, horn-warmers, and hats for everyone. But the animals still look cold, so she continues knitting until “the sun came close to see what was up.” When she knits a hat for the sun, he is so beamingly pleased he finally warms the farm up. “Now everyone was toasty again.” The ink-and-watercolor illustrations are breezy and add humorous details such as the dog’s two separate pairs of booties and the cow’s purple horn-warmers. Bonnie herself has the sturdy look of a preschooler, an effect enhanced by her red overalls, round face, and button nose. The tale can stand alone, but the fun is in reading the entire group and seeing each day’s activities.
The simple storylines will make Bonnie Bumble seem like a friend to preschoolers, who no doubt will want to start the week all over again. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3627-2
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
Instills a sense of well-being in youngsters while encouraging them to explore the natural world.
This reassuring picture book exemplifies how parents throughout the animal kingdom make homes for their offspring.
The narrative is written from the point of view of a parent talking to their child: “If you were a beaver, I would gnaw on trees with my teeth to build a cozy lodge for us to sleep in during the day.” Text appears in big, easy-to-read type, with the name of the creature in boldface. Additional facts about the animal appear in a smaller font, such as: “Beavers have transparent eyelids to help them see under water.” The gathering of land, air, and water animals includes a raven, a flying squirrel, and a sea lion. “Home” might be a nest, a den, or a burrow. One example, of a blue whale who has homes in the north and south (ocean is implied), will help children stretch the concept into feeling at home in the larger world. Illustrations of the habitats have an inviting luminosity. Mature and baby animals are realistically depicted, although facial features appear to have been somewhat softened, perhaps to appeal to young readers. The book ends with the comforting scene of a human parent and child silhouetted in the welcoming lights of the house they approach: “Wherever you may be, you will always have a home with me.”
Instills a sense of well-being in youngsters while encouraging them to explore the natural world. (Informational picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63217-224-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bigfoot/Sasquatch
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to...
A hug shouldn’t require an instruction manual—but some do.
A porcupine can frighten even the largest animal. In this picture book, a bear and a deer, along with a small rabbit, each run away when they hear eight simple words and their name: “I need a hug. Will you cuddle me,…?” As they flee, each utters a definitive refusal that rhymes with their name. The repetitive structure gives Blabey plenty of opportunities for humor, because every animal responds to the question with an outlandish, pop-eyed expression of panic. But the understated moments are even funnier. Each animal takes a moment to think over the request, and the drawings are nuanced enough that readers can see the creatures react with slowly building anxiety or, sometimes, a glassy stare. These silent reaction shots not only show exquisite comic timing, but they make the rhymes in the text feel pleasingly subtle by delaying the final line in each stanza. The story is a sort of fable about tolerance. It turns out that a porcupine can give a perfectly adequate hug when its quills are flat and relaxed, but no one stays around long enough to find out except for an animal that has its own experiences with intolerance: a snake. It’s an apt, touching moral, but the climax may confuse some readers as they try to figure out the precise mechanics of the embrace.
This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to pet a porcupine.” (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-29710-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2018
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