A humorous, engaging tale of a child confused by his parents’ complaints.
In Ryan’s debut children’s book, a young boy imagines his parents have a pet that makes messes and causes trouble around the house.
A young boy is perplexed. His parents often comment on the vexing, mysterious behavior of “my pet peeve,” and he’s confused because he can’t see this pet: “ ‘Where did these crumbs on the couch come from?’ my mom asks. ‘That is my pet peeve!’ ” and “ ‘Why is there water all over the bathroom floor?’ my dad asks. ‘That is my pet peeve!’ ” With each new situation, the boy learns another clue about the pet’s identity. For instance, “[s]ometimes Peeve uses my stuff without my permission. ‘Who left a skateboard at the bottom of the staircase?’ my dad asks.” The parents are irked by behavior that ranges from leaving a dirty cereal bowl on the table to tracking mud around the living room to getting chocolaty fingerprints on the piano keys. These are the kinds of careless but commonplace things that kids do every day, so the story may help teach youngsters about the importance of taking care of things and of being aware of how one’s actions can affect others. The boy imagines that Peeve is small and fast, possibly with a horn and spiky tail or maybe a pair of wings; it’s amusing to see the child trying to figure out what’s going on. The book also makes clear to young readers exactly who Peeve is, with most of its space devoted to Durkin’s colorful illustrations that clearly show the situations that irritate the parents. The images also make it easier to understand the text, and with so much repetition, it’s a good book for young readers to practice new words. It may also inspire kids to talk with their parents or teachers about their own pet peeves.
A humorous, engaging tale of a child confused by his parents’ complaints.Pub Date: Sept. 4, 2014
ISBN: 978-1612252445
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Mirror Publishing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
What if the market was closed when you wanted to bake a pie? You could embark for Europe, learn Italian en route, and pick up some semolina wheat in Italy, an egg in France, kurundu bark for cinnamon in Sri Lanka, and an entire cow in England (butter) before coming home via Jamaica (sugar) and Vermont (apples). The expertly designed illustrations in which a dark-haired lass journeys by various means to these interesting places to get her groceries are lovely and lively, and the narrative, too, travels at a spritely pace. The journey is neither quite logical enough to be truly informative nor quite bizarre enough to be satisfyingly silly, while the rich, sweet recipe that's appended will take some adult assistance. Still, fun. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-83705-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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