Harvey’s mirth and ingenuity are apparent throughout, and though some components misfire, many more are delightfully daffy....
Uncle Kevin has a farm, e-i-e-i-oh, there’s a lot going on there!
No job is too big or too small on Kevin’s farm, and everyone pitches in. Harvey’s busy illustrations have a Where’s Waldo? feel, the first presenting an aerial view of the entire enormous place, with about 100 critters and nearly as many people working in various areas. Subsequent two-page spreads give close-up views of each area. Each has some descriptive text, and most include a bit of verse. In the shed, all kinds of farm equipment is being repaired. One woman holds a bright blue drill and has a piglet peeking out of the front pocket of her bib overalls; a man walks down the stairs holding a cow (!) in his arms; a barrel labeled “take your pick” is full of, well, pickaxes. Elsewhere, the pigs and the sheep play right next to each other; the former get washed every day, while the latter are being lovingly sheared. The orchard features a variety of trees, like pears and almonds and “ozfruit” (this is an Australian import). Signor Paddy and Signora Maria Antipasto keep all the egg-laying fowl on the farm and make great cakes and biscuits, too. There’s also a vineyard, rows of crops, stables, a diner with adjoining lawns for picnics, etc.
Harvey’s mirth and ingenuity are apparent throughout, and though some components misfire, many more are delightfully daffy. Like a big box of chocolates. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-74175-882-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Review Posted Online: April 9, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
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