Humphrey and his older sister Lottie are young elephant siblings in this third offering in a series for preschoolers by Hunter (Humphrey’s Bedtime, 2001, etc.). The little elephants are getting ready to celebrate Christmas at home, playing in the snow, decorating, cooking, and enjoying Christmas Eve traditions with their mother. Hunter’s soft, gently shaded watercolor illustrations help create appealing characters in striped pajamas, flowered dresses, and amusing reindeer slippers for Lottie. In one comical illustration, Humphrey opens the last tiny window on his advent calendar with his trunk, and in a subsequent circular spot illustration, he falls asleep on the big night with his stocking clutched in his arms. The last spread shows the elephant children opening their presents along with their baby sibling. The text on this spread is a little confusing, as Humphrey calls his toy monkey Mop, and Lottie says her new doll can be Lulu’s best friend, but readers who are new to the series won’t be quite sure if these names refer to the toys or the baby elephant. The simple storyline has just a few words per page, hand-lettered in soft gray like a child’s printing with pencil. The basic plot and short length make this a good choice for toddlers who need a short, calming bedtime story on Christmas Eve—just like Humphrey and Lottie. (Picture book. 2-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-8050-7176-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...
A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.
As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A bit of a turkey itself.
A board-book twist on “This Little Piggy” has turkeys making the preparations for the family feast.
The text echoes the familiar rhyme, even beginning with “This little turkey went to market.” Readers already introduced to standard animal-sounds books will wonder what happened when they get to the end and the turkeys sound a lot like the final piggy, singing, “We…we …we... / …wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!” What happened to “gobble-gobble-gobble”? Furthermore, the in-between activities feel selected to suit the rhyme scheme rather than logic: why would a turkey knit a sweater, and what does that have to do with Thanksgiving? Blanco distinguishes the turkeys from one another with clothing and comb style, but they all have the same wattle and chubby wings/arms. Gender stereotyping is incompletely avoided. A turkey in a fedora goes to market, while a turkey wearing a baseball cap and trousers with suspenders “swept the floor.” Both male and female birds help set the table, but turkeys in dresses and pompadoured combs mind the little turkeys until supper is served, knit that sweater, and eventually call everyone in to eat.
A bit of a turkey itself. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0302-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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