This curious but intriguing pairing of science fields from the publishers of Darcy Pattison and Kathleen Rietz’s Prairie...
Over the course of a day, predators and prey roar, bellow, trumpet, cry, squeal, purr, and sometimes sneak quietly through the savanna in this introduction to African animals and the science of sounds.
The nicely rounded narrative begins and ends with the lion family. Activities and sounds of wildebeests, elephants, vervet monkeys, baboons, zebras, spiny mice, and yellow-winged bats are described in a simple text. Also pictured and mentioned in the backmatter are a python and a milky eagle owl. The animals are clearly identifiable in the illustrations (produced digitally with watercolor embellishment), which also reveal the progression of the day, from dawn through nightfall, spread by spread. Some double-page spreads feature pictures on pictures, close-up images set over more expansive scenes of this important habitat. Particularly striking are two spreads showing the dramatic escape of a larger-than–life-size spiny mouse from an attacking owl thanks to the mouse’s tearaway “brittle skin.” The variety of sound words used will please teachers, as will the four pages of backmatter, which include additional explanations, hands-on activities, and a predator/prey quiz. A Spanish-language version is also available.
This curious but intriguing pairing of science fields from the publishers of Darcy Pattison and Kathleen Rietz’s Prairie Storms (2011) and Desert Baths (2012) will be equally welcomed in libraries and classroom collections. (Informational picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-62855-632-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Arbordale Publishing
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2015
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends
Gerald the elephant learns a truth familiar to every preschooler—heck, every human: “Waiting is not easy!”
When Piggie cartwheels up to Gerald announcing that she has a surprise for him, Gerald is less than pleased to learn that the “surprise is a surprise.” Gerald pumps Piggie for information (it’s big, it’s pretty, and they can share it), but Piggie holds fast on this basic principle: Gerald will have to wait. Gerald lets out an almighty “GROAN!” Variations on this basic exchange occur throughout the day; Gerald pleads, Piggie insists they must wait; Gerald groans. As the day turns to twilight (signaled by the backgrounds that darken from mauve to gray to charcoal), Gerald gets grumpy. “WE HAVE WASTED THE WHOLE DAY!…And for WHAT!?” Piggie then gestures up to the Milky Way, which an awed Gerald acknowledges “was worth the wait.” Willems relies even more than usual on the slightest of changes in posture, layout and typography, as two waiting figures can’t help but be pretty static. At one point, Piggie assumes the lotus position, infuriating Gerald. Most amusingly, Gerald’s elephantine groans assume weighty physicality in spread-filling speech bubbles that knock Piggie to the ground. And the spectacular, photo-collaged images of the Milky Way that dwarf the two friends makes it clear that it was indeed worth the wait.
A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends . (Early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9957-1
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Filled with love and kindness and glorious sweet-talk: “Yippee-i-oh.” (Fiction. 6-9)
Leroy Ninker dreams of being an honest-to-goodness cowboy as he watches Western movies while working at the concession stand at the drive-in theater.
He has some of the lingo down pat, and he knows he will need boots, a hat and a lasso. But his co-worker points out that he is missing the most important element of all: a horse. Providentially, there is a horse for sale. Though she is swaybacked and almost toothless, it is love at first sight when Leroy sees Maybelline. Leroy is given some unusual instructions; he must sweet-talk and compliment the horse, feed her plenty of grub and never leave her alone for more than a few moments. So there he is with a horse that won’t fit through his door, gobbles up potfuls of spaghetti and needs constant attention. Adventures and misadventures abound, and both horse and cowboy become lost in a scary storm. But with a little help from some old friends who have appeared in the author-illustrator team’s earlier works, it all comes together with the expected happy ending. DiCamillo’s quirky, eccentric characters speak in flowery sentiments and employ charming wordplay. Along with Van Dusen’s well-matched illustrations, there’s a sweet, retro innocence reminiscent of McCloskey’s classic Homer Price. Despite the old-fashioned accent, the absurdities will easily appeal to a modern audience.
Filled with love and kindness and glorious sweet-talk: “Yippee-i-oh.” (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6339-1
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
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