A charming introduction to creatures native to Australia and a wake-up call to care for our planet.
An Australian bushfire wreaks havoc on wildlife.
The plight of creatures native to Australia—a wombat, a skink, a wallaby, and an echidna—is dramatically told in this story of a raging fire. Ignited by a lightning flash, the fire endangers the animals’ lives and their habitats. Expressed through richly poetic language, the story captures the ways in which the blaze upends the animals’ lives, forcing them to flee and seek shelter. This is a tale rooted in fact, and children will learn some basic information about the animals’ habits and the climatic factors that generate life-threatening flames, emphasized by a tempestuous spread featuring the “Ka-Boom!” of the lightning strike. A gentle fictional component, arising from Wombat’s digging prowess and the cozy burrow it digs for itself, leads to a sweet denouement in which its neighbors find a safe haven. Thus, readers will also discover a welcome message about kindness. The warmly colored illustrations are splendid, providing realistic depictions of the animals and the landscapes surrounding them. Wombat is presented as a cuddly, endearing animal; throughout, the artwork focuses readers’ close attention on how Wombat shelters inside its underground lair. An author’s note explains that Australia has an annual fire season and references the particularly calamitous bushfires that occurred there in 2019-2020, exacerbated by global warming and drought. Additional facts about the animals are included. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A charming introduction to creatures native to Australia and a wake-up call to care for our planet. (bibliography, including websites) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Jan. 11, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-70706-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
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Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with...
Reynolds and Brown have crafted a Halloween tale that balances a really spooky premise with the hilarity that accompanies any mention of underwear.
Jasper Rabbit needs new underwear. Plain White satisfies him until he spies them: “Creepy underwear! So creepy! So comfy! They were glorious.” The underwear of his dreams is a pair of radioactive-green briefs with a Frankenstein face on the front, the green color standing out all the more due to Brown’s choice to do the entire book in grayscale save for the underwear’s glowing green…and glow they do, as Jasper soon discovers. Despite his “I’m a big rabbit” assertion, that glow creeps him out, so he stuffs them in the hamper and dons Plain White. In the morning, though, he’s wearing green! He goes to increasing lengths to get rid of the glowing menace, but they don’t stay gone. It’s only when Jasper finally admits to himself that maybe he’s not such a big rabbit after all that he thinks of a clever solution to his fear of the dark. Brown’s illustrations keep the backgrounds and details simple so readers focus on Jasper’s every emotion, writ large on his expressive face. And careful observers will note that the underwear’s expression also changes, adding a bit more creep to the tale.
Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with Dr. Seuss’ tale of animate, empty pants. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0298-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
Only for dedicated fans of the series.
When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.
“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.
Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4894-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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