A kids’ book with fine illustrations but overly familiar story trappings.
A boy travels to a magical world in this beautifully illustrated children’s novel by Richardson (Lavender Blue and the Fairies of Galtee Wood, 2013) and artist Sansom (Fairy Blossoms #3: Rose and the Delicious Secret, 2009, etc.).
Young Logan is always competing with his older brother, John, and despite his skill at video games, sports and the slingshot, he always feels second-best. After a mysterious bird lures the boy into eccentric Professor Priddle’s house, he soon launches into an adventure in the microscopic, magical world of Canlandia. He soon discovers that his arrival fulfills part of a prophecy about a hero from the “outer world,” who’s destined to save Canlandia from the evil Baron Von Jawbreaker and his Mad Gobstoppers. Logan doesn’t believe he’s special, but he wants to help, and alongside Canlandia’s greatest warrior, Butterbrickle (who’s Logan’s age), he travels through dangerous wilderness to confront the Baron. Along the way, he earns Butterbrickle’s respect and gains a new level of self-confidence. The world of Canlandia, with its edible environment and candy-colored landscape, is well worth exploring, thanks especially to Sansom’s brightly colored paintings. An author’s note at the end shows photos of the real-world landscapes in Ireland, Utah, Colorado and elsewhere that inspired the Canlandian locations, and these images are sure to spark young readers’ imaginations. The book’s impressive production value could easily make it a coffee-table book. However, the story doesn’t quite live up to the beautiful illustrations that surround it. Logan’s journey is a traditional portal fantasy, in which a young boy finds inner strength to defeat the villain. But although he faces many challenges, he doesn’t develop very much as a character, beyond his growth in confidence. Butterbrickle also never quite becomes a full, well-rounded person; despite her strength and amazing skill, her main function is simply to believe in Logan. And although the Baron voices a diatribe about wanting to be a benevolent dictator that changes Canlandia for the better, he never really moves beyond mustache twirling.
A kids’ book with fine illustrations but overly familiar story trappings.Pub Date: April 16, 2014
ISBN: 978-0978642235
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Impossible Dreams Publishing Co.
Review Posted Online: Aug. 23, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound.
The titular cookie runs off the page at a bookstore storytime, pursued by young listeners and literary characters.
Following on 13 previous How To Catch… escapades, Wallace supplies sometimes-tortured doggerel and Elkerton, a set of helter-skelter cartoon scenes. Here the insouciant narrator scampers through aisles, avoiding a series of elaborate snares set by the racially diverse young storytime audience with help from some classic figures: “Alice and her mad-hat friends, / as a gift for my unbirthday, / helped guide me through the walls of shelves— / now I’m bound to find my way.” The literary helpers don’t look like their conventional or Disney counterparts in the illustrations, but all are clearly identified by at least a broad hint or visual cue, like the unnamed “wizard” who swoops in on a broom to knock over a tower labeled “Frogwarts.” Along with playing a bit fast and loose with details (“Perhaps the boy with the magic beans / saved me with his cow…”) the author discards his original’s lip-smacking climax to have the errant snack circling back at last to his book for a comfier sort of happily-ever-after.
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-0935-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
