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EIGHT ANIMALS BAKE A CAKE

Name: EIGHT ANIMALS BAKE A CAKE
Author: Susan Middleton Elya
ISBN: 0-399-23468-3

by Susan Middleton Elya & illustrated by Lee Chapman ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 1, 2002

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The clever format of this delightful story will have even the youngest children speaking and understanding Spanish. The ocho animales featured in Elya’s previous Eight Animals on the Town (2000) come together to bake a cake, each bringing one ingredient. The friends stir the batter, place it in the oven, and listen to Bird sing as they try to be patient. The table is all set and ready, but when the cake lands on the floor, all seems lost. As the animals lament their ruined dessert, Cow sends Bird flying off with some cash. When she returns, she carries a large prickly fruit, piña, which Cow uses to save the day. Families can enjoy the same dessert—the recipe follows the story. Each of Elya’s couplets seamlessly introduce or reinforce two Spanish words, while the cunning rhyme scheme helps readers with their pronunciation. From the names of the eight animals and the ingredients they contribute, to the common household objects they come across, there is no doubt as to the meaning of the new vocabulary. As the tale progresses, the animals are referred to only by their Spanish names, while clues in the couplets and illustrations help readers remember their meanings. While the story is amusing and educational, it is the novelty of hearing and learning a new language, combined with the marvelously colorful illustrations that will capture and hold children’s attention. A Mexican influence is apparent in Chapman’s (Doggie Dreams, 2000) detailed illustrations—from the bright colors of the equator and the palms and cacti, to the bright geometric border, the folk art–inspired drawings are sure to please. A glossary and a pronunciation guide is included, although the articles associated with Spanish nouns are absent. An appealingly painless introduction to another language. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: July 1, 2002

ISBN: 0-399-23468-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2002

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
THE THREE BILLY GOATS BUENOS
by Susan Middleton Elya ; illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez

- BOOK REVIEW
MAYA PAPAYA AND HER AMIGOS PLAY DRESS-UP
by Susan Middleton Elya ; illustrated by Maria Mola

- BOOK REVIEW
OUR CELEBRACIÓN!
by Susan Middleton Elya ; illustrated by Ana Aranda

PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

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PETE THE CAT'S 12 GROOVY DAYS OF CHRISTMAS

by James Dean ; illustrated by James Dean ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among

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Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.

If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”

Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9

Page Count: 48

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

- BOOK REVIEW
PETE THE KITTY AND THE BEANSTALK
by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
PETE THE KITTY'S FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL
by Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

- BOOK REVIEW
I LOVE PETE THE KITTY
by James Dean & Kimberly Dean ; illustrated by James Dean

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HENRY AND MUDGE AND THE STARRY NIGHT

From the Henry and Mudge series

by Cynthia Rylant & illustrated by Sucie Stevenson ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1998

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Rylant (Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers, 1998, etc.) slips into a sentimental mode for this latest outing of the boy and his dog, as she sends Mudge and Henry and his parents off on a camping trip. Each character is attended to, each personality sketched in a few brief words: Henry's mother is the camping veteran with outdoor savvy; Henry's father doesn't know a tent stake from a marshmallow fork, but he's got a guitar for campfire entertainment; and the principals are their usual ready-for-fun selves. There are sappy moments, e.g., after an evening of star- gazing, Rylant sends the family off to bed with: ``Everyone slept safe and sound and there were no bears, no scares. Just the clean smell of trees . . . and wonderful green dreams.'' With its nice tempo, the story is as toasty as its campfire and swaddled in Stevenson's trusty artwork. (Fiction. 6-8)