by Skye Byrne ; illustrated by Nic George ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 20, 2015
Choice words and creative visuals combine to celebrate and inspire the mind’s eye.
A five-year-old’s imagination comes to his rescue when his stuffed rabbit goes missing.
Raspberry, a cuddly companion with large and expressive ears, was a gift from Grandpa to Henry on the day he was born; the two are inseparable. After the rabbit disappears and the house is turned upside down during the search, Grandpa’s “warm, knowledgeable voice” soothes the child, as does his suggestion to “imagine that you have Raspberry back!” George employs a minimalism that establishes an effective foil to the eventual blossoming of Henry’s interior world. Characters, furniture, and selected objects are formed with gentle lines of ink and filled with the color of the background—a softly textured surface that shifts across a spectrum, from gold to charcoal. In the opening scenes, a leafy branch, striped shirt, and muffin with jelly are among the collaged elements creating interest along the borders. As the theater of the child’s mind takes over, photographs of landscapes—filtered, to align with the subdued palette—are inserted. Then, artfully arranged salt concocts a snowcapped cave in which the boy and pet cook dinner; clothespins turn into crocodiles in a sea of fabric. Distracted with the pleasure of make-believe, the child even drifts off to sleep sans rabbit, although a special nocturnal delivery ensures a satisfying conclusion.
Choice words and creative visuals combine to celebrate and inspire the mind’s eye. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 20, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4814-0626-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
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by Sherman Alexie ; illustrated by Yuyi Morales ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 10, 2016
An expertly crafted, soulful, and humorous work that tenderly explores identity, culture, and the bond between father and...
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Thunder Boy Smith Jr. hates his name.
The Native American boy is named after his father, whose nickname is Big Thunder. Thunder Boy Jr. says his nickname, Little Thunder, makes him "sound like a burp or a fart." Little Thunder loves his dad, but he longs for a name that celebrates something special about him alone. He muses, “I love playing in the dirt, so maybe my name should be Mud in His Ears.…I love powwow dancing. I’m a grass dancer. So maybe my name should be Drums, Drums, and More Drums!” Little Thunder wonders how he can express these feelings to his towering father. However, he need not worry. Big Thunder knows that the time has come for his son to receive a new name, one as vibrant as his blossoming personality. Morales’ animated mixed-media illustrations, reminiscent of her Pura Belpré Award–winning work in Niño Wrestles the World (2013), masterfully use color and perspective to help readers see the world from Little Thunder’s point of view. His admiration of his dad is manifest in depictions of Big Thunder as a gentle giant of a man. The otherwise-muted palette bursts with color as Thunder Boy Jr. proudly enumerates the unique qualities and experiences that could inspire his new name.
An expertly crafted, soulful, and humorous work that tenderly explores identity, culture, and the bond between father and son. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 10, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-316-01372-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2016
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by Sherman Alexie & illustrated by Ellen Forney
by David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2020
A retro-futuristic romp, literally and figuratively screwy.
Robo-parents Diode and Lugnut present daughter Cathode with a new little brother—who requires, unfortunately, some assembly.
Arriving in pieces from some mechanistic version of Ikea, little Flange turns out to be a cute but complicated tyke who immediately falls apart…and then rockets uncontrollably about the room after an overconfident uncle tinkers with his basic design. As a squad of helpline techies and bevies of neighbors bearing sludge cake and like treats roll in, the cluttered and increasingly crowded scene deteriorates into madcap chaos—until at last Cath, with help from Roomba-like robodog Sprocket, stages an intervention by whisking the hapless new arrival off to a backyard workshop for a proper assembly and software update. “You’re such a good big sister!” warbles her frazzled mom. Wiesner’s robots display his characteristic clean lines and even hues but endearingly look like vaguely anthropomorphic piles of random jet-engine parts and old vacuum cleaners loosely connected by joints of armored cable. They roll hither and thither through neatly squared-off panels and pages in infectiously comical dismay. Even the end’s domestic tranquility lasts only until Cathode spots the little box buried in the bigger one’s packing material: “TWINS!” (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-22-inch double-page spreads viewed at 52% of actual size.)
A retro-futuristic romp, literally and figuratively screwy. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-544-98731-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: June 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2020
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by David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner
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by Donna Jo Napoli & David Wiesner ; illustrated by David Wiesner
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