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WAITING FOR ICE

Name: WAITING FOR ICE
Author: Sandra Markle
ISBN: 978-1-58089-255-1

by Sandra Markle & illustrated by Alan Marks ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2012

Sturdy and well-put-together nature writing for younger readers.

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Markle provides an uncommon look at polar bears, the largest hunters on land, in this narrative that follows an orphaned cub barely old enough to survive on her own.

Trapped on Wrangel Island in the Arctic Sea, waiting late into the fall for the annual floating pack ice to form, she and other polar bears subsist on the few animals they can find—typically only birds and walruses, as a note on global warming explains at the back. No big gestures or overt drama about the effects of climate change here, but a focused, simple look at how polar bears survive during so much of the year, when there’s no ice to help them in their hunt for seals in the Arctic waters. Marks’ realistic watercolor-and-pencil illustrations in blues and grays show a spare landscape and just enough detail to link the bear cub with the text. Bright spots of red on a walrus calf captured and killed by an older bear and on the dead bird found by the cub are subtle reminders that the bears are predators and carnivores. The language is straightforward, simple and clear, offering only the hope that the cub will survive the winter. An author’s note, polar bear facts, sources for more information and a discussion of global warming provide extensions to the story.

Sturdy and well-put-together nature writing for younger readers. (Informational picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-58089-255-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Charlesbridge

Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2012

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

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CAN MUD BE THAT?!
by Sandra Markle ; illustrated by Alexandra Colombo

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THE GREAT NARWHAL RESCUE
by Sandra Markle

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CALL THE BEE DOCTOR!
by Sandra Markle

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THE PUMPKIN THIEF

From the Leaf Thief series

by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 28, 2026

More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.

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Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.

Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.

More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: July 28, 2026

ISBN: 9781464268076

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SUN THIEF
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater

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THE SNOW THIEF
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nicola Slater

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BISON AND THE BUTTERFLY
by Alice Hemming ; illustrated by Nancy Leschnikoff

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)