Though they may have fun with it, readers’ attempts to sink their teeth into this story will find them gummed up with...
This dino with a penchant for greenery means well, but his tale is clearly hampered by its confusing message.
If you want to know anything about dinosaurs, then the kid to talk to is Ruth Ann MacKenzie. A whiz at everything related to residents of the Cretaceous, she visits a mysterious new museum exhibit that plants her firmly in the past and within the protective sphere of Linus, a polite, blue T-Rex who wouldn’t dream of eating meat. After watching him munch on plants and pal about with every creature he meets, Ruth Ann decides to set the sweet guy straight. Fortunately, her misguided attempts are interrupted by two hungry velociraptors who are put in their place by a clearly ferocious Linus. Conclusion? “I’m just me—a very big, very brave, very VEGETARIAN Tyrannosaurus rex!” Children may have a hard time determining what lesson they are to take from this. Are they meant to learn that vegetarianism doesn’t make you a wimp? Or that it will win them hordes of adoring friends and fans? Or just not to make assumptions? (Kids like Ruth Ann will note Linus’ many pointy teeth and wonder how he’s going to negotiate that carrot….) Where the story falters, the art leaps and soars. From the many-colored eyes of the iguanodons to the velociraptors hidden on almost every page, the book is a visual treat.
Though they may have fun with it, readers’ attempts to sink their teeth into this story will find them gummed up with uncertain conclusions. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: July 9, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4169-8512-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2013
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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