Halloween is coming, and Otter is taking the holiday quite seriously, picking out the best pumpkin, choosing an appropriately scary costume, and thoroughly decorating the house—but when trick-or-treaters come, she is in for an unexpected surprise.
Fans of Otter’s previous titles will certainly celebrate her autumn return (Otter in Space, 2015, etc.). Just like any young tyke who is excited about Halloween, Otter marks the date on the calendar, enlists her (stuffed animal) friends to help her prepare, and often takes things a bit far due to her abundant enthusiasm. In one humorous series of vignettes, she decorates everything she can reach with cobwebs, including Otter Keeper’s leg, and dumps a whole container of glitter on her magical broomstick. Even when things don’t turn out the way she would like, her innovative resolve inspires, as when Giraffe wants to dress up like a fairy. “He wasn’t really taking Halloween seriously. Everyone knows fairies aren’t scary. So I added some teeth.” After practicing at being scary with Pig, Otter and her cuddly buddies, Giraffe and Teddy, seem ready—until the doorbell rings. The costumed kids at the door prove a bit too scary for dear Otter. But wise (adult human) Otter Keeper chats with her and Pig, and they come up with a crafty solution. Garton pairs his charming story with funny details in the bright digital illustrations that only make a great book even better.
This one’s a real treat. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236666-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2015
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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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. 20, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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The bestselling series (How to Catch an Elf, 2016, etc.) about capturing mythical creatures continues with a story about various ways to catch the Easter Bunny as it makes its annual deliveries.
The bunny narrates its own story in rhyming text, beginning with an introduction at its office in a manufacturing facility that creates Easter eggs and candy. The rabbit then abruptly takes off on its delivery route with a tiny basket of eggs strapped to its back, immediately encountering a trap with carrots and a box propped up with a stick. The narrative focuses on how the Easter Bunny avoids increasingly complex traps set up to catch him with no explanation as to who has set the traps or why. These traps include an underground tunnel, a fluorescent dance floor with a hidden pit of carrots, a robot bunny, pirates on an island, and a cannon that shoots candy fish, as well as some sort of locked, hazardous site with radiation danger. Readers of previous books in the series will understand the premise, but others will be confused by the rabbit’s frenetic escapades. Cartoon-style illustrations have a 1960s vibe, with a slightly scary, bow-tied bunny with chartreuse eyes and a glowing palette of neon shades that shout for attention.
This bunny escapes all the traps but fails to find a logical plot or an emotional connection with readers. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-3817-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Jan. 17, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2017
Categories: CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
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