An inspiring adventure.
A tenacious child finds strength in the jungle when her family needs help.
Itzel, a brown-skinned girl, lives with her nana on the edge of a Salvadoran jungle. Severe drought threatens Itzel’s way of life, and Itzel’s nana explains that the giant snake who has been responsible for bringing the rainy season down from the hills has returned to where it was born. Determined to find and awaken the giant snake, Itzel leaves the house while her nana sleeps and begins her search. Along the way, Itzel meets and teams up with the titular Ocelot, who is also thirsty and willing to help with the search. The pair encounter other jungle critters who, desperate for water, join the effort. The situation looks grim when they reach the end of their journey and find only more arid land. Disappointment gives way to rushing water when a hopeless Itzel finally meets the giant snake. A lesson in self-determination and a nod to climate change and the impact of passionate individuals, Itzel’s story also reminds readers of the power of groups working toward a common goal. Bold blocks of color and playful illustrations will captivate. Spanish and Nawat (one of the Indigenous languages of El Salvador) vocabulary is embedded in the story. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An inspiring adventure. (glossary, author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0506-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
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
Just the thing for anyone with a Grinch-y tree of their own in the yard.
A grouchy sapling on a Christmas tree farm finds that there are better things than lights and decorations for its branches.
A Grinch among the other trees on the farm is determined never to become a sappy Christmas tree—and never to leave its spot. Its determination makes it so: It grows gnarled and twisted and needle-less. As time passes, the farm is swallowed by the suburbs. The neighborhood kids dare one another to climb the scary, grumpy-looking tree, and soon, they are using its branches for their imaginative play, the tree serving as a pirate ship, a fort, a spaceship, and a dragon. But in winter, the tree stands alone and feels bereft and lonely for the first time ever, and it can’t look away from the decorated tree inside the house next to its lot. When some parents threaten to cut the “horrible” tree down, the tree thinks, “Not now that my limbs are full of happy children,” showing how far it has come. Happily for the tree, the children won’t give up so easily, and though the tree never wished to become a Christmas tree, it’s perfectly content being a “trick or tree.” Martinez’s digital illustrations play up the humorous dichotomy between the happy, aspiring Christmas trees (and their shoppers) and the grumpy tree, and the diverse humans are satisfyingly expressive.
Just the thing for anyone with a Grinch-y tree of their own in the yard. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-7335-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
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