Egan’s understated, hilarious travelogue continues as Dodsworth and his duck pal explore Rome, Italy. The duck—still wearing an acorn beret from Paris (Dodsworth in Paris, 2008)—is the motor for most of the laughs. Standing beside colossal columns in St. Peter’s Square, he comments dryly, “I feel smaller than usual.” Inside the Sistine Chapel, he notes placidly, “That’s weird…. There isn’t one duck in the entire painting.” Moments later, he’s on the ceiling with white paint, remedying that omission. Ink-and-watercolor illustrations employ tiny smiles and minimalist expressions to underscore the humor. In a pizza-throwing contest (“You’re good at throwing food,” comments Dodsworth, and indeed, the duck throws things in every city), the duck sneaks Dodsworth’s suitcase behind a table to stand on, never telling Dodsworth. A chaotic search for the suitcase yields nothing, and without the cash inside it, Dodsworth can’t afford a hotel. They doze overnight on the Spanish Steps. Next day, they dine heartily on found money—until honest Dodsworth discovers that the duck “found” the coins in the Trevi Fountain. Is the duck a descendent of Amelia Bedelia, innocently believing that a flea market contains fleas and that “Rome” means to roam around? Or is he slyly “mak[ing] the trip a little more exciting?” Deadpan delivery means there’s no way to tell, and that’s the brilliance of the duck. May the journey continue. (Early reader. 5-8)
Pub Date: April 18, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-39006-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 27, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2011
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader!
Fun with friends makes for a great day.
Norbit, a salmon-colored worm with a pink kerchief, joyfully greets the day and everyone he encounters. “Hello, friends! It’s time for fun with the sun! Let’s play!” He and his menagerie of forest pals—including the sun, who grows limbs and descends from the sky—exuberantly engage in various forms of physical activity such as jumping, going down a slide, spinning around, and watching the clouds go by. Young readers will readily relate, as these are games that most children are familiar with. As day turns to night, Norbit says farewell to Sun and welcomes Moon with an invitation to continue the fun. Watkins has created a vivid world of movement and merriment. Her illustrations feature bright bursts of color that match the energy of the text, with most sentences ending in an exclamation point. The author/illustrator incorporates many elements that make for an ideal early-reading experience (despite the use of a contraction or two): art free from clutter, text consisting of words with only one or two syllables, and repetition and recurring bits, such as a continued game of hide-and-seek with Sun. Inspired by never-before-seen sketches from the Dr. Seuss Collection archives at the University of California San Diego, this is the first title for Seuss Studios, a new imprint for original stories from “emerging authors and illustrators” who “honor Seuss’s hallmark spirit of creativity and imagination.”
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader! (author's note) (Early reader. 5-8)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9780593646212
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Seuss Studios
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor
Having surveyed worms, spiders, flies, and head lice, Gravel continues her Disgusting Critters series with a quick hop through toad fact and fancy.
The facts are briefly presented in a hand-lettered–style typeface frequently interrupted by visually emphatic interjections (“TOXIN,” “PREY,” “EWWW!”). These are, as usual, paired to simply drawn cartoons with comments and punch lines in dialogue balloons. After casting glances at the common South American ancestor of frogs and toads, and at such exotic species as the Emei mustache toad (“Hey ladies!”), Gravel focuses on the common toad, Bufo bufo. Using feminine pronouns throughout, she describes diet and egg-laying, defense mechanisms, “warts,” development from tadpole to adult, and of course how toads shed and eat their skins. Noting that global warming and habitat destruction have rendered some species endangered or extinct, she closes with a plea and, harking back to those South American origins, an image of an outsized toad, arm in arm with a dark-skinned lad (in a track suit), waving goodbye: “Hasta la vista!”
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor . (Informational picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-77049-667-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2016
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