edited by Tony Ross and illustrated by Tony Ross ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2009
The first U.S. edition of a large-type, large-format gathering of standard Mother Goose rhymes—plus the occasional interloper, such as “Mary Had a Little Lamb” and “Itsy Bitsy Spider.” The compiler pares “Old Mother Hubbard” and “Tom, the Piper’s Son” down to one verse each, but lets “Simple Simon” ramble on for five and the title rhyme for a long four. There is no particular order or progression to the 49 selections, and a “frame story” in which Nelly asks her Granddad for a story “about real things” adds little to the experience. Aside from a Little Piggy who “had none” while exercising on a treadmill, Ross dresses everyone in old-time garb in his loosely drawn illustrations, and interprets the verses with slavish literalness. Although readers are almost certain to find one or two rhymes previously unfamiliar to them, overall it’s an ordinary outing, unlikely to displace the collections illustrated by Richard Scarry or Rosemary Wells, or to make much of an impression on the diapered set. (Nursery rhymes. 2-4)
Pub Date: April 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8885-4
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2009
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by Jane Cabrera & Jane Cabrera ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 1, 2011
Similar to Lenny Hort’s Seals on the Bus, illustrated by G. Brian Karas (2000), this treatment populates the bus with a...
Cabrera continues to adapt nursery rhymes and children’s songs (Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush, 2010, etc.) into interactive picture books for the young preschool set, here taking on that beloved bus ride.
Similar to Lenny Hort’s Seals on the Bus, illustrated by G. Brian Karas (2000), this treatment populates the bus with a menagerie of African animals ranging from the common lion and zebra to lesser-known flamingos and bush babies. Most animals make a trio of sounds, like the monkeys’ “Chatter, chatter, chatter” or the hyena’s “Ha, ho, hee,” but on occasion there is action: The chameleon “plays Hide-and-seek.” The tale ends as the giraffe driver delivers the wild riders to a watering hole with a satisfying “SPLISH! SPLASH! SPLOSH! All day long!” Readers will enjoy the journey Cabrera illustrates with her easily recognizable style—bright hues outlined in black, with a finger-paint–like texture.Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8234-2350-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2011
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by Aly Fronis ; illustrated by Migy Blanco ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 6, 2016
A bit of a turkey itself.
A board-book twist on “This Little Piggy” has turkeys making the preparations for the family feast.
The text echoes the familiar rhyme, even beginning with “This little turkey went to market.” Readers already introduced to standard animal-sounds books will wonder what happened when they get to the end and the turkeys sound a lot like the final piggy, singing, “We…we …we... / …wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!” What happened to “gobble-gobble-gobble”? Furthermore, the in-between activities feel selected to suit the rhyme scheme rather than logic: why would a turkey knit a sweater, and what does that have to do with Thanksgiving? Blanco distinguishes the turkeys from one another with clothing and comb style, but they all have the same wattle and chubby wings/arms. Gender stereotyping is incompletely avoided. A turkey in a fedora goes to market, while a turkey wearing a baseball cap and trousers with suspenders “swept the floor.” Both male and female birds help set the table, but turkeys in dresses and pompadoured combs mind the little turkeys until supper is served, knit that sweater, and eventually call everyone in to eat.
A bit of a turkey itself. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4998-0302-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2016
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