Kuhlmann’s detailed art will pull in readers who like to see how things fit together, while his message is abundantly clear...
The evolution of a city built beneath a green meadow by anthropomorphic moles is narrated visually.
The industrious moles build their elaborate, busy civilization without paying much attention to the natural world—with predictably bad consequences—in a largely wordless allegory about the downside of progress. Kuhlmann’s art for the underground city is richly done in earthy tones, with the gray-blue of the moles’ coveralls and the glow of lamps, screens, and lightbulbs punctuating the sense of being constantly indoors, electricity in use everywhere. Bits of telephones and gaming handsets decorate the moles’ compact living and working spaces. Underground trains ferry commuters in all directions, including up and down. The city’s development proceeds to the point where vehicles packed end to end crowd the square of a heavily stacked city as mole-oriented signage looms over the streets: “smutch,” “sand,” “soil.” The devastation that has been wrought on the surface above them appears in a double-page spread just after this: the formerly green meadow is a wasteland of derricks and piles of bare earth. It’s only on the rear endpapers that hope appears, with thumbnail black-and-white “photos” showing a wind farm rising above the bare-dirt meadow and a mole enjoying a bit of fresh air.
Kuhlmann’s detailed art will pull in readers who like to see how things fit together, while his message is abundantly clear for everyone. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7358-4208-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: NorthSouth
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2015
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
An earnest graduation gift: sweet for lifelong fans, cheerfully encouraging for striving, future graduates.
Success comes at last for the bright-eyed Pigeon.
A clever, tongue-in-cheek ersatz colophon reveals that this graduate has been awarded a “Master of Ornery-thology, Bachelor of Arts of Persuasion with a Minor in Major Freak-outs (summa cum loudly).” Fans will be glad that the Pigeon’s tireless, abundant optimism is finally being ceremoniously recognized. On the cover, the Pigeon wears a mortarboard at a jaunty angle, commenting, “I have the hat!” Of course, dressing the part is essential. But also, “I did the work. I paid attention to the little details. I took some BIG steps.” The Pigeon encountered obstacles (not shown, but many memorable ones will come to mind for the Pigeon's followers). And the Pigeon is plagued by worries familiar to many students who are about to graduate: “WHAT WILL HAPPEN THEN?!? What will I do? Who will I be?” The Pigeon appears in every frame, in close-ups and in poses variously thoughtful, confident, or slightly distressed. Our hero’s simple big eyes and wings are, as ever, remarkably expressive. “Oop!” In one scene, while walking off the dais, diploma in wing, the Pigeon comes to what seems like the edge of a chasm. At last, our hero takes flight with other graduates. Willems' popular characters Gerald and Piggie are there to look on admiringly.
An earnest graduation gift: sweet for lifelong fans, cheerfully encouraging for striving, future graduates. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781454960430
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
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.
