EDWARD GETS MESSY

Name: EDWARD GETS MESSY
Author: Rita Meade
ISBN: 978-1-4814-3777-6

by Rita Meade ; illustrated by Olga Stern ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 13, 2016

This can’t approach Patrick McDonnell’s A Perfectly Messed-Up Story (2014) for anxiety about mess and chaos or Deborah...

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If you’re afraid to get messy, you might be missing out.

As a “very particular pig,” Edward—who stands upright and is child-shaped except for his face, ears, and feet—can’t bear messiness. He lines up spray-bottle cleaners in a neat row; in the living room, he appears three times on the same page to diligently dust, vacuum, and straighten picture frames. He won’t eat spaghetti and meatballs or do art projects at school (and, indeed, spaghetti, meatballs, and paint fly through the air when his classmates get their hands on them). He even “vacuums his perfectly sparkling goldfish tank with a special underwater vacuum.” Edward’s manic, bug-eyed expression on that page and the capital letters that explain he “FEARS filth” scream that Edward doesn’t have a mere preference—he has anxiety. One day, he’s straightening a supply shelf when plop, splat, crash—paint goes everywhere. The text calls him “DEVASTATED,” but he actually looks just shocked, then nonplussed. Before long, he’s painting. Messes don’t scare him anymore, and everything from spaghetti fights to exploding science experiments is fair game. Stern’s colored-pencil illustrations are bright and friendly, though some grins look exaggerated.

This can’t approach Patrick McDonnell’s A Perfectly Messed-Up Story (2014) for anxiety about mess and chaos or Deborah Freedman’s Blue Chicken (2011) for glorious spills, but it’s a fine addition. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-4814-3777-6

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: June 27, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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WHY A DAUGHTER NEEDS A MOM

by Gregory R. Lange ; illustrated by Sydney Hanson ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2019

New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.

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All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.

Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.

New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)

Pub Date: May 1, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)