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GECKOS IN THE GARDEN

Name: GECKOS IN THE GARDEN
Author: Ruth Amanda
ISBN: 9781039168831

written and illustrated by Ruth Amanda ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 8, 2023

A bit light on facts but still a compelling counting book.

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Geckos abound in this children’s counting book by author/illustrator Amanda.

Written in verse, this book counts ten geckos, one at a time, while adding an image of each into successive watercolor illustrations. Easy-to-read rhymes appear opposite the art: “This is a great adventure / And I think that I’m in heaven, / When I spot some GECKOS in the leaves. SEVEN GECKOS. Seven!” The text also addresses young readers directly, encouraging them to count along with the narrator: “Can you find them just like me?” The illustrations are the most impressive part of the book—bright, brilliant paintings with creatures cleverly hidden among lush foliage, grasses, trees, and tropical flowers. The text does offer a few facts about geckos—such as that they eat bugs and use camouflage and so on—but these only seem to appear when they conveniently fit into the rhyme scheme and meter. Readers who want to learn more about these lizards may be disappointed by the lack of scientific detail regarding geckos’ habitats, for instance, or how many different species there are. Otherwise, though, this is a fun book that offers a clear, engaging, and interactive experience.

A bit light on facts but still a compelling counting book.

Pub Date: March 8, 2023

ISBN: 9781039168831

Page Count: 28

Publisher: FriesenPress

Review Posted Online: May 4, 2023

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

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PETE THE KITTY'S FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL
by Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

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by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

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TOOL SCHOOL
by Joan Holub ; illustrated by James Dean

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)