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FINCH'S FIRST FLIGHT

Name: FINCH'S FIRST FLIGHT
Author: Steve Ciabattoni
ISBN: 9781665746175

HOW ONE LITTLE BIRD OVERCAME HIS FEAR OF FLYING

by Steve Ciabattoni Steve Ciabattoni illustrated by Annie Wilkinson ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 21, 2023

A sweet, boldly illustrated tale of conquering your fears that will likely appeal to very young children.

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A young bird and a young boy both conquer their fear of flying during one adventurous plane ride in Ciabattoni’s picture book.

Finch is a bird who lives at the airport but is afraid to fly. One day, Finch meets a young boy with fair skin and black hair getting ready to embark on his first airplane ride. The boy admits that he’s afraid and asks Finch, who he assumes is a great flyer since he’s a bird, to help him through the experience. Finch doesn’t want to disappoint him, so he agrees, and the boy hides him in his pocket as they board the plane. While Finch shuts his eyes in fear, the boy points out all that he’s missing—when the bird finally looks out the window, he sees breathtakingly beautiful farmland, mountains, and lakes. This gives him the courage to try flying himself: “Finch was scared, but now he was also curious.” Of course, a bird flying inside an airplane causes quite the hilarious ruckus, but the experience gives Finch the courage and desire to fly in the sky once the plane lands. The bright illustrations by Wilkinson perfectly complement the simple tale. With easy vocabulary and a straightforward plot, emerging readers should have no trouble tackling it on their own.

A sweet, boldly illustrated tale of conquering your fears that will likely appeal to very young children.

Pub Date: July 21, 2023

ISBN: 9781665746175

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Archway Publishing

Review Posted Online: Sept. 29, 2023

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

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FRANKENKITTY

by Maudie Powell-Tuck ; illustrated by Mini Grey ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 7, 2026

A top-grade creepy/funny addition to the spooky-picture-book canon.

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Is a cute kitty built in a castle’s laboratory responsible for the bad things that start happening?

“Here is a tale to chill the blood and thrill the soul—a tale of spooky paws and eerie claws.” The disembodied talking skull who narrates this story is alluding to Frankenkitty, who was engineered out of multiple cats, with visible stitches to show for it. As the house ghouls look on, Frankenkitty’s inventor laments, “I’ve created a monster!” Sure enough, bad things start happening: The mummy begins to unravel. Kitchen mice terrorize the cook. Certainly, Frankenkitty must be to blame. But after the butler, who resembles Frankenstein’s Monster, tosses Frankenkitty outside into the snow, where he looks forlorn and adorable, the skull has second thoughts: “Wait! Did we get it wrong?” It’s up to readers to make the call. Powell-Tuck goes all in with her spoof of old-time horror tropes, although kids needn’t know who Boris Karloff is to be tickled. For the book’s every scare (a severed foot and hand, their bones visible), there’s a wink (in a bit of metafictive fun, the skull urges readers to opt for a story about “unicorns, beasts, or bears”). Grey, a glutton for detail, leans on menacing reds and sickly greens to capture the frights, which include, in a line for the spooky-story ages, “walls as gray as old underpants.” Human characters vary in skin tone.

A top-grade creepy/funny addition to the spooky-picture-book canon. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: July 7, 2026

ISBN: 9781664300972

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Tiger Tales

Review Posted Online: March 23, 2026

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026

Categories:

CHILDREN'S PARANORMAL & SUPERNATURAL

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by Maudie Powell-Tuck ; illustrated by Duncan Beedie

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THE MOONLIGHT ZOO
by Maudie Powell-Tuck ; illustrated by Karl James Mountford

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THE MAGICAL CHRISTMAS STORE
by Maudie Powell-Tuck ; illustrated by Hoang Giang

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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)