This silly but original story demonstrates that imagination can be both troubling and exhilarating.
Where are all the animals that keep making strange noises in this little girl’s house?
When a loud “QUACK” is heard as Daddy sits down to dinner, both mother and daughter look alarmed. Could that have been a duck he squashed? At least he said, “Excuse me!” And did the little girl hear a lion’s roar in her parents’ bedroom? All she finds is Daddy finishing a big yawn. She sees the silhouette of a gorilla in the shower and smells a hippo in the bathroom. The flummoxed girl asks her father about all the strange, hidden animals, and he responds cryptically, asking her if she’s ever “sailed on a walrus’s back through the sea” or “ridden a bald eagle up into the skies.” Here, readers see the girl happily riding on her father’s back while he swims and getting a ride up the staircase on her dad’s shoulders. The illustrations have the look of cut-paper collage and include such distinctive details as Daddy’s tattoo and heavy metal T-shirts. The verse is less openly subversive, carrying the fart and toilet jokes along in forced couplets. This book will work best with children old enough to understand that it’s her dad making all of these vulgar sounds (and smells); readers who share the little girl’s credulity will be as mystified as she is.
This silly but original story demonstrates that imagination can be both troubling and exhilarating. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 5, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-316-40749-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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