This memorable interpretation will appeal to collectors of pop-up books and Christmas stories and to Christian families who...
The renowned paper engineer offers a retelling of the Nativity story.
The appealing cover is done in metallic lavender-blue with Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus in white silhouette, adorned with gold haloes. This visual theme—midrange pastel shades as background, white figures, and gold highlights—carries through the entire volume, providing a refreshing palette for a Christmas story. Each of the six pop-up scenes is astonishing in complexity and breathtaking to behold. The first scene is the Annunciation, the second shows Mary and Joseph traveling to Bethlehem, and the third is the stable and the manger with baby Jesus. Following scenes show the shepherds and their sheep and then the wise men following the star, with the last scene showing all the characters at the stable and an angel floating overhead. The angels are particularly beautiful, arranged so they appear to be flying as the spread is opened. The white paper used for the moving parts is quite sturdy, and the scenes fold back together fairly easily, so this book will last if handled carefully. Each scene is accompanied by a paragraph of well-written summary that’s carefully integrated into the backgrounds, making the text a natural partner to the exquisite art.
This memorable interpretation will appeal to collectors of pop-up books and Christmas stories and to Christian families who would like a special version of the Nativity story to share on Christmas Eve. (Pop-up picture book/religion. 4 & up)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-8326-9
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2016
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A laugh-inducing Halloween read-along.
The Crayons return in time for Halloween as vampire-costumed Purple coaches the dressed-up wax pack through its first trick-or-treating venture.
It takes five houses’ worth of door-knocks for this skeleton crew of seven to perfect the protocol, with enough outlandish flubs to generate giggles in Halloween-savvy preschoolers. At Door No. 1, Orange, dressed as a jack-o’-lantern, says, “Give us your candy, Lady.” At the next, the gang, encouraged by Purple to “think holiday,” responds with an impressive array of misguided greetings, including “Merry Christmas!” and “Happy American Cheese Month!” Later, White, levitating impressively in a ghost costume, overreacts to Halloween’s “scary” aspect by overwhelming residents with a “BOO!” Peach, unnamed here but recognizably wrapperless from the initial title, exuberantly (and inappropriately) repeats, “I’m naked!” Finally, the troupe perfects its treat-inducing line, though a certain ghost cannot resist an ad lib. This excursion, like many of the holiday-themed Crayon books, has a smaller trim size, a lower price point, and far less complexity than Daywalt and Jeffers’ first two Crayon titles. Still, the pair deftly let young children in on the jokes through funny, hand-lettered dialogue and the visually telegraphed, all-in haplessness of this well-branded band. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A laugh-inducing Halloween read-along. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-62102-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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