An emotionally honest portrait of shifting family dynamics.
Change is hard but often worth it.
One spring, an overall-clad child (who narrates) and Mom plant a pumpkin seed in a pot filled with soil. The very day it sprouts tiny leaves, Mom’s romantic partner, Sam, moves in, bringing with her a “strange box with no bottom”—a compost bin that elicits a “yuck” from the youngster. Things are a bit rocky, but everyone enjoys working together in the garden. The pumpkin plant flourishes, and soon it’s time to plant it into the ground. Carrying it to the garden, the narrator stumbles. Sam rushes to help, but the child explodes in a torrent of accusations: “You hurt my knee and broke my pumpkin plant and I wish you’d never come to live here!” Sam is calmly sympathetic; she salvages the plant and points out that compost from the bin “will help the pumpkins grow big and delicious.” O’Neill uses concrete, garden-themed metaphors to convey the child’s complex emotional landscape: The youngster initially feels “all squished” when everyone piles onto the bench in the garden; the long wait until the pumpkins grow offers a satisfying parallel with the patience required when a family adds a new member. Magro’s appealing, mostly realistic button-eyed characters in colorful settings pair well with the text. Mom and the child are brown-skinned and dark-haired; bespectacled Sam is pale-skinned and red-haired.
An emotionally honest portrait of shifting family dynamics. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2026
ISBN: 9798887773001
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2026
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
A charming mix of science lesson and winsome storytelling.
The perky red squirrel introduced in The Leaf Thief (2020) is confused.
Bird and Squirrel both love summer, but when Bird calls out a cheery “Night night,” Squirrel, yawning himself, is incredulous: “BEDTIME? It can’t be! The sun’s still up, look!” Naturally there’s a lot more bewilderment ahead. Some weeks later, Squirrel is alarmed to see it’s dark at toothbrushing time. In skittish Squirrel’s view, a “sun thief”—who also made an odd “hoo” sound the other night—is responsible. Bird explains that as summer goes on, the sun sets earlier and earlier each night and reassures Squirrel that owls cry “hoo.” But the very next evening, at bathtime, Squirrel shines a bright light into the dark, sees something looming, and screams that the sun thief has “crashed into my tree!” Patient Bird, roused from slumber, points out that it’s just Bat. But “why was she flapping about in the dark?” Now Bird explains what nocturnal means. Once again, Squirrel is amusingly slow on the uptake, allowing readers to feel superior as Hemming gently folds in some science. Slater’s witty illustrations also lighten the lessons: Bird hangs a tiny T-shirt and shorts on a diminutive laundry line and sleeps tucked into a cozy repurposed sardine can, where a scared Squirrel attempts to squeeze in; Squirrel sports a pink bath towel and shower cap; a real thief quietly makes off with a couple of items (though Squirrel and Bird remain blissfully unaware).
A charming mix of science lesson and winsome storytelling. (info on light changes and diurnal/nocturnal) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464258183
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: June 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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