This Dylan Thomas–Dr. Seuss–Lewis Carroll love child has the power to enrapture, with lots of practice.
Halloween night brings an epic battle between hordes of “SKUL-A-MUG-MUGS” (skeletons) and the “tyke-tots” (children) who want to go out trick-or-treating.
Heidbreder crafts his tale in rhyming nonsensical text, while Martz illustrates in a cartoon style with a strict palette of black, grays, white, yellow, orange and reds. Set against the dark night, the menacing skeletons boast how they will “brain-frizz tall-bigs. / Halloween they’ll deep nix. / They’ll shup-clup inside / nasty Noras and Nicks!” But the costumed kids rally—they are not “splooked-out” like their parents. On a vibrantly red double-page spread, the two forces splendidly clash on a neighborhood street: “The scare-fest crish-crashed, / up-over-round under… // …but strong-sure tyke-tots / out movvered SKUL thunder.” Soon the skeletons disappear, adults shake off their fears, and the children resume their Halloween quest for candy. All ends well on a high fueled by the exciting victory and the profusion of “sweet-treats.” Some readers will enjoy puzzling out the meanings of the many made-up words or simply relish how the language sounds when read aloud. But others may not be up to the task of so much decoding, even if the impeccably detailed pictures help provide much-needed clues to the action.
This Dylan Thomas–Dr. Seuss–Lewis Carroll love child has the power to enrapture, with lots of practice. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-55453-302-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2013
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
A cheery story that “wool” likely evoke some smiles.
A “baa”-nd of pirates gets the wool pulled over their eyes.
After a treasure-hunting foray, Captain Hoof and his crew of fleecy sheep are homeward bound with a glittery bounty—the lost Golden Shears, which once belonged to the infamous Woolly Jones. Suddenly, huge waves engulf and smash their ship. They’re sheepwrecked and stranded on Foggy Island, home to none other than Woolly Jones. After nearly a month of failed attempts to get off the island, Captain Hoof decides to return the shears to their rightful owner. Trekking across the island through fog as thick and impenetrable as wool, captain and crew eventually bump into their nemesis, who snatches the shears from the captain’s hooves. Expecting dire consequences, everyone starts to flee, but things turn out wool, er, well. In a 90-degree book turn, Woolly is depicted using the shears to give himself a much-needed “woolcut.” He’s grateful for the shears—and for the company after a long, lonely spell. Captain Hoof and crew are delighted at this outcome. This is a cute tale, though the plot is a bit thin; the numerous, amusing sheep puns will appeal more to grown-ups than kids. But the digital illustrations are comical and dynamic, and the all-ovine protagonists are lively and expressive. The book contains lots of typographical creativity, including some onomatopoeic words, incorporated into the artwork, and maps in the endpapers include islands bearing funny, aptly punny names.
A cheery story that “wool” likely evoke some smiles. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: July 9, 2024
ISBN: 9780593569665
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
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