For fans of the series, more of the same.
Pinkalicious goes to the beach.
All decked out in her signature color, Pinkalicious is happily beachcombing when she picks up a large shell, and out tumbles a pink-haired, aqua-finned (and bra’ed) miniature mermaid. The creature introduces herself as Aqua and explains that she is a merminnie, “a smaller, rarer species of mermaids.” Pinkalicious’ response is predictable: “WOWEEE!” Toting her new find in her beach bucket, the little girl carries her to her family’s (pink) umbrella and dumps her out to show her off. Aqua’s reaction is also predictable: she wants to go back home. Disregarding her captive’s desires, Pinkalicious and her little brother, Peter, build a big sandcastle for Aqua; the ungrateful thing still wants to go home, but the children distract her with a snack and a game of minigolf. After more mild adventures, the children finally put her in the ocean—but it turns out that Aqua is the star merminnie of the aquarium nearby. The children’s cruelty is never interrogated, beyond Aqua’s carping at being carried in the beach bucket. Kann’s digital collages feature stiff characters with often unnaturally long arms and disproportionately tiny feet; when they are not smiling vapidly, their mouths form little O’s of consternation. The text is riddled with exclamation points, as if hoping to make up in enthusiasm what it lacks in craft.
For fans of the series, more of the same. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 3, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-233016-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A wandering effort, happy but pointless.
The perfect book for kids who love dragons and mild tacos.
Rubin’s story starts with an incantatory edge: “Hey, kid! Did you know that dragons love tacos? They love beef tacos and chicken tacos. They love really big gigantic tacos and tiny little baby tacos as well.” The playing field is set: dragons, tacos. As a pairing, they are fairly silly, and when the kicker comes in—that dragons hate spicy salsa, which ignites their inner fireworks—the silliness is sillier still. Second nature, after all, is for dragons to blow flames out their noses. So when the kid throws a taco party for the dragons, it seems a weak device that the clearly labeled “totally mild” salsa comes with spicy jalapenos in the fine print, prompting the dragons to burn down the house, resulting in a barn-raising at which more tacos are served. Harmless, but if there is a parable hidden in the dragon-taco tale, it is hidden in the unlit deep, and as a measure of lunacy, bridled or unbridled, it doesn’t make the leap into the outer reaches of imagination. Salmieri’s artwork is fitting, with a crabbed, ethereal line work reminiscent of Peter Sís, but the story does not offer it enough range.
A wandering effort, happy but pointless. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-8037-3680-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings.
The Crayons head back to class in this latest series entry.
Daywalt’s expository text lays out the basics as various Crayons wave goodbye to the beach, choose a first-day outfit, greet old friends, and make new ones. As in previous outings, the perennially droll illustrations and hand-lettered Crayon-speak drive the humor. The ever wrapperless Peach, opining, “What am I going to wear?” surveys three options: top hat and tails, a chef’s toque and apron, and a Santa suit. New friends Chunky Toddler Crayon (who’s missing a bite-sized bit of their blue point) and Husky Toddler Crayon speculate excitedly on their common last name: “I wonder if we’re related!” White Crayon, all but disappearing against the page’s copious white space, sits cross-legged reading a copy of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man. And Yellow and Orange, notable for their previous existential argument about the color of the sun, find agreement in science class: Jupiter, clearly, is yellow AND orange. Everybody’s excited about art class—“Even if they make a mess. Actually…ESPECIALLY if they make a mess!” Here, a spread of crayoned doodles of butterflies, hearts, and stars is followed by one with fulsome scribbles. Fans of previous outings will spot cameos from Glow in the Dark and yellow-caped Esteban (the Crayon formerly known as Pea Green). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: May 16, 2023
ISBN: 9780593621110
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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