A very pleasant and graceful new version packaged in a small trim size that suits the heroine and young readers/listeners as...
The oft-adapted tale of the tiny girl who has big adventures.
Here is a smoothly paced, lyrical retelling of Andersen’s classic that works equally well as a read-aloud, with its onomatopoeia and jaunty jingles, as it does an independent-reading title for early to middle graders. Those familiar with the story as well as newcomers will be delighted by the small protagonist who conquers fears, overcomes harrowing encounters, stands up for herself, devises clever ideas to extricate herself from trouble, and emerges triumphant. Of course, since this is a fairy tale, Thumbelina, who demonstrates refreshing feistiness here, doesn’t accomplish all this on her own. Depicted with very white skin and vaguely Asian features, Thumbelina receives much help from animals and a fairy king (who, in this version, wants to learn to sew!). Youngsters will appreciate the familiar tropes, including ancillary animal characters with distinct, sometimes-humorous, sometimes-sinister personalities. The retelling is much enhanced by beautiful paintings in a charming, dreamy folkloric style that emphasize Thumbelina’s diminutiveness. A timeless feel is maintained by the repetition of certain decorative motifs, and illustrations rendered in fluorescent pinks add a quirky sprightliness befitting the story and protagonist; lush endpapers add to the charm.
A very pleasant and graceful new version packaged in a small trim size that suits the heroine and young readers/listeners as well. (Fantasy. 5-9)Pub Date: April 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-78285-276-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
As Captain Awesome would say, this kid is “MI-TEE!” (Fiction. 5-8)
The town of Sunnyview got a little bit safer when 8-year-old Eugene McGillicudy moved in.
Just like his comic-book mentor, Super Dude, Eugene, aka Captain Awesome, is on a one-man mission is to save the world from supervillains, like the nefarious “Queen Stinkypants from Planet Baby.” Just as Eugene suspected, plenty of new supervillains await him at Sunnyview Elementary. Are Meredith Mooney and the mind-reading Ms. Beasley secretly working together to try and force Eugene to reveal his secret identity? Will Principal Brick Foot succeed in throwing Captain Awesome into the “Dungeon of Detention?” Fortunately, Eugene isn’t forced to go it alone. Charlie Thomas Jones, fellow comic-book lover and Super Dude fan, stands ready and willing to help. When the class hamster goes missing, Captain Awesome must don his cape and, with the help of his new best friend, ride to the rescue. Kirby’s funny and engaging third-person narration and O’Connor’s hilarious illustrations make the book easily accessible and enormously appealing, particularly to readers who have recently graduated to chapter books. But it is the quirky, mischievous Eugene that really makes this book special. His energy and humor are contagious, and his dogged commitment to his superhero alter ego is enough to make anyone a believer.
As Captain Awesome would say, this kid is “MI-TEE!” (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: April 3, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-4090-6
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 17, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
A gentle adventure that sets the stage for future quests.
A lonely prince gains a friend for a quest to find a missing jewel.
Prince Lucas of Wrenly has everything a boy could possibly want—except a friend. His father has forbidden him to play with the village children for reasons of propriety. Adventure-seeking Lucas acquires peasant clothes to masquerade as a commoner and make friends, but he is caught out. His mother, the queen, persuades the king to allow him one friend: Clara, the daughter of her personal dressmaker. When the queen’s prized emerald pendant goes missing, Lucas and Clara set off to find it. They follow the jewel as it changes hands, interviewing each temporary owner. Their adventure cleverly introduces the series’ world and peoples, taking the children to the fairy island of Primlox, the trolls’ home of Burth, the wizard island of Hobsgrove and finally Mermaid’s Cove. By befriending the mermaids, Lucas and Clara finally recover the jewel. In thanks, the king gives Clara a horse of her own so that she may ride with Lucas on their future adventures. The third-person narration is generally unobtrusive, allowing the characters to take center stage. The charming, medieval-flavored illustrations set the fairy-tale scene and take up enough page space that new and reluctant readers won’t be overwhelmed by text.
A gentle adventure that sets the stage for future quests. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-9691-0
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
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