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LOCHFOOT

Name: LOCHFOOT
Author: W. Scott Matthews

by W. Scott Matthews & illustrated by W. Scott Matthews ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 4, 2014

Great premise but, overall, a disappointing experience.

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This story about the spawn of Bigfoot and Nessie (aka the Loch Ness Monster) suffers from a dry storyline and a significant lack of interaction and ingenuity.

The basic concept is clever: Two legendary, elusive creatures have made a family together. They have a son named Lochfoot, who is apparently still trying to come to terms with his obligation to make himself scarce in the world. He befriends Zach and Madi, kids who’ve wandered away from their family’s campsite, and that premise alone is rife with creative storytelling possibilities. Instead, this treatment deteriorates into a dull narrative that ends up at odds with the mysterious vibe the developer seemed to have been shooting for. For example, the app is accompanied by eerie electronic music throughout, but the female narrator sounds like she could be telling a story about a stuffed teddy bear, which kind of kills the spooky groove. The dialogue also detracts from the mystical mood, as the characters sound more like stereotypical American teenagers than daring kids or an enigmatic creature. There’s no interaction to speak of beyond turning pages; the animation is all automatic. When their worried parents ask where they’ve been after the kids return to the campsite, they lie about it in order to protect Lochfoot and his family. Understandable on one level; troubling on another.

Great premise but, overall, a disappointing experience. (iPad storybook app. 4-7)

Pub Date: Jan. 4, 2014

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: William Matthews

Review Posted Online: Feb. 11, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2014

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HOW TO CATCH A WITCH

by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 2, 2022

Not enough tricks to make this a treat.

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Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.

Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland

Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH BIGFOOT
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH AN INVISIBLE BAD GUY
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Andy Elkerton

- BOOK REVIEW
HOW TO CATCH A GROUNDHOG
by Alice Walstead ; illustrated by Emma Gillette & Andy Elkerton

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)