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MAX AND RUBY'S PRESCHOOL PRANKS

Name: MAX AND RUBY'S PRESCHOOL PRANKS
Author: Rosemary Wells
ISBN: 978-0-670-78462-2

From the Max & Ruby series

by Rosemary Wells ; illustrated by Rosemary Wells ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 26, 2016

The science project adds an unusual wrinkle to this primer for incoming nursery schoolers.

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Even when most of the “students” are plush, playroom preschool isn’t always going to be an orderly environment.

After firmly divesting Max of his gorilla suit and setting brown rabbit Lily’s volcano kit on a high shelf, “Miss Ruby” and “Miss Louise” (Ruby’s friend and Lily’s older sister) gamely string up numbers, review basic shapes, and establish rules. The tykes will have none of it: Max spots the hidden gorilla suit, and as soon as floppy Can’t-Sit-Up Slug needs to be carried off to the nurse, down comes the volcano kit. Off to the kitchen Lily and Max hustle, to add ingredients (“Paprika!” “Ketchup, sprinkles, and marmalade!”) to the baking soda–and-vinegar recipe. “Boom!” says Max admiringly, as the volcano does its thing. The “teachers’ ” rules, along with diverse classroom activities and the kit’s recipe, are hidden beneath flaps that resemble little workbooks. The toddler-shaped lagomorphs in the illustrations are as winning as ever, and along with photographed jars of rice, grains, sprinkles, and alphabet-soup letters inserted into the kitchen scene, Wells concocts a gloriously messy climactic eruption.

The science project adds an unusual wrinkle to this primer for incoming nursery schoolers. (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: July 26, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-670-78462-2

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

- BOOK REVIEW
THE LITTLE CHEFS
by Rosemary Wells ; illustrated by Rosemary Wells

- BOOK REVIEW
GENIUS IN A HIGH CHAIR
by Rosemary Wells ; illustrated by Rosemary Wells

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE NIGHT BEFORE KINDERGARTEN
by Rosemary Wells ; illustrated by Rosemary Wells

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I NEED A HUG

by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 29, 2019

This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to...

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A hug shouldn’t require an instruction manual—but some do.

A porcupine can frighten even the largest animal. In this picture book, a bear and a deer, along with a small rabbit, each run away when they hear eight simple words and their name: “I need a hug. Will you cuddle me,…?” As they flee, each utters a definitive refusal that rhymes with their name. The repetitive structure gives Blabey plenty of opportunities for humor, because every animal responds to the question with an outlandish, pop-eyed expression of panic. But the understated moments are even funnier. Each animal takes a moment to think over the request, and the drawings are nuanced enough that readers can see the creatures react with slowly building anxiety or, sometimes, a glassy stare. These silent reaction shots not only show exquisite comic timing, but they make the rhymes in the text feel pleasingly subtle by delaying the final line in each stanza. The story is a sort of fable about tolerance. It turns out that a porcupine can give a perfectly adequate hug when its quills are flat and relaxed, but no one stays around long enough to find out except for an animal that has its own experiences with intolerance: a snake. It’s an apt, touching moral, but the climax may confuse some readers as they try to figure out the precise mechanics of the embrace.

This is a tremendously moving story, but some people will be moved only on the second reading, after they’ve Googled “How to pet a porcupine.” (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-338-29710-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Scholastic

Review Posted Online: Sept. 29, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
CAT ON THE RUN IN HIDDEN LAYERS!
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

- BOOK REVIEW
CRANKY PUG
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

- BOOK REVIEW
CAT ON THE RUN IN CUCUMBER MADNESS!
by Aaron Blabey ; illustrated by Aaron Blabey

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GOOD NIGHT OWL

by Greg Pizzoli ; illustrated by Greg Pizzoli ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 19, 2016

A funny tale about stress and an ever upping ante, with a comforting end.

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Something is preventing Owl from falling asleep.

Owl leans back against his white pillow and headboard. “Squeek!” says something underneath the bed. Owl’s never heard that sound before, so he fastens his pink bathrobe and answers the front door. Nobody. It must be the wind; back to bed. Bidding himself goodnight, he climbs into bed—and hears the noise again. Time after time, he pops out of bed seeking the squeaker. Is it in the cupboard? He empties the shelves. Under the floor? He pulls up his floorboards. As Owl’s actions ratchet up—he destroys the roof and smashes the walls, all in search of the squeak—so does his anxiety. Not until he hunkers down in bed under the night sky (his bed is now outdoors, because the house’s roof and walls are gone), frantically clutching his pillow, does he see what readers have seen all along: a small, gray mouse. In simple illustrations with black outlines, textured coloring, and foreshortened perspective, Pizzoli plays mischievously with mouse placement. Sometimes the mouse is behind Owl or just out of his sightline; other times, the mouse is on a solid, orange-colored page across the spread from Owl, which removes him from Owl’s scene in a rather postmodern manner. Is the mouse toying with Owl? Who knows?

A funny tale about stress and an ever upping ante, with a comforting end. (Picture book. 3-5)