by Susanna Isern ; illustrated by Mariana Ruiz Johnson ; translated by María Perez ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 21, 2020
Enjoy the art, ignore the story.
Animal best friends squabble and then make up.
Tim, a light green squirrel, and Teo, a red rabbit, are friends who believe that “there is nothing better than eating hazelnuts on a mountaintop.” When the last hazelnut disappears, however, each blames the other, and they’re both prepared to end the friendship over it. Luckily, after a day and night of anger, they simultaneously decide to forgive each other for eating the last hazelnut and bring a new bowl of nuts to the scene of the conflict. When it’s discovered that a thieving bird was responsible the whole time, the two animals agree that sharing is a good thing and that they should “roll down the mountain together.” The illustrations are remarkable, pleasantly garish, and detailed, with the animals sporting particularly flamboyant outfits (such as Teo’s black-and-white skintight pants with delicate black shoes. The story, translated from Spanish, is rendered in the present tense, not a good choice for this kind of read-aloud. And the animals’ language is stilted and uncomfortable from the first exchange: “ ‘Hi, Teo! I was looking for you. I’ve just picked some hazelnuts. Shall we share them?’ ‘What a great idea, Tim! I love hazelnuts!’ ” It goes on to give children monotone scripts for conflict resolution rather than a story: “ ‘You know what, Teo? It feels good to share.’ ‘I totally agree, Tim.’ ”
Enjoy the art, ignore the story. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-64686-055-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
Share your opinion of this book
More by Susanna Isern
BOOK REVIEW
by Susanna Isern ; illustrated by Amélie Graux
BOOK REVIEW
by Susanna Isern ; illustrated by Leire Salaberria ; translated by Cecilia Ross
BOOK REVIEW
by Susanna Isern ; illustrated by Mylène Rigaudie ; translated by Ben Dawlatly
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
Share your opinion of this book
More by Hoda Kotb
BOOK REVIEW
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Suzie Mason
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
Share your opinion of this book
More by Tish Rabe
BOOK REVIEW
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings
BOOK REVIEW
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
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.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.