A cute but not entirely satisfying meditation.
In this Chinese import, a green pencil stuck in a desk drawer at an elementary school dreams about having adventures that will take it far away, to a place where no one will know who (or what) it is.
The pencil fantasizes about standing in a meadow, watering its “top” such that it sprouts leaves and even a flower; the butterflies and bear who enjoy the flower don’t recognize the cleverly disguised pencil. Next, the pencil dreams about making itself a leafy umbrella for fish to hide beneath and a frog to sit upon. The pencil then considers pretending to be vegetables, like peas and even a zucchini. It imagines itself as a raft, a paddle, and sporting equipment. Finally, the pencil dreams of making its way back into the classroom so that (child) readers can use it to write down their own dreams and fantasies. Narrated in the first person and addressing readers directly, Zhang’s narrative is cheerful, and his partial use of rhyming words suits this nicely to reading aloud, although the plot itself is not particularly original. Cao’s bright and clever illustrations seamlessly connect the narrative, building upon the frames that have come before and carrying the story forward. Occasional details delight: The pencil acts as crossing guard for a line of ants bearing tomatoes on their backs. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11.375-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 73% of actual size.)
A cute but not entirely satisfying meditation. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4788-6846-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Reycraft Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2020
Nicely tuned to a preschool sense of the ridiculous. (Picture book. 3-5)
A clever—and impossibly cute—child thwarts a bumbling beast at every turn.
Every day around lunchtime, big blue Troll tries to eat the little Oliver, who dances mirthfully over hill and dale and through forest, singing a taunting tune. "You'll never catch me! / I'm much too quick—as you can see." Indeed, this seems to be true. The Oliver suddenly vanishes whenever Troll gets close. Readers will almost feel sorry for the green-eyed, snaggle-toothed monster. The pursuit goes on for many months, through winter and into the new year's thaw. One day, exhausted and demoralized, Troll decides to go back to his cave. Later, the Oliver sees no trace of Troll; it's most peculiar. As he's mixing up a cake batter, the Oliver realizes that he's won. And at that very moment, Troll leaps out of hiding via a nifty half-page turn: “CHOMP!” It turns out, though, that Olivers taste terrible, and Troll spits it out. Both sit in depressed silence until a ding from the oven awakens them, changing everything. It turns out they both love CAKE! Not since Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner has there been such a happy mismatch of inept hunter and blithe prey. Stower's ink-and-wash illustrations use white space and a hand-drawn feeling for maximum mirth. Bonus: a recipe from The Trolliver Cookbook.
Nicely tuned to a preschool sense of the ridiculous. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-7956-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Templar/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 5, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2015
Readers unfamiliar with the TV series may be left scratching their heads, and even for those who are fans, Tiny’s dilemma...
A British stop-motion animated series makes the jump across the pond to print.
The TV series, originally broadcast from 1969 to 1972, was resurrected in 2015. The mouselike Clangers live on a planet in outer space also inhabited by mother and baby Soup Dragons and egg-shaped froglets and overseen by Iron Chicken, an amalgamation of washers, nuts, bolts, and other metal parts. (Readers may be reminded of Fraggle Rock.) The Clangers themselves are pink knit creations differentiated by size and by vest and hair color. In this tale, the youngest Clanger, Tiny, “dons her radio hat and makes her nightly bedtime call to Iron Chicken,” asking for her lullaby. (The iron hat looks like a parody of paranoiac headgear.) But something is wrong with the hat tonight, and Tiny can’t sleep without her lullaby. What follows is her attempt to get someone to sing to her, though the quest goes on far too long and inconsistencies crop up—brother Small was asleep but then suddenly is not. In the end, the froglets, Baby Soup Dragon, and Small all convince Tiny that she should sing to them, and the lullaby works like a charm on them all, Tiny included.
Readers unfamiliar with the TV series may be left scratching their heads, and even for those who are fans, Tiny’s dilemma feels overlong. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-54144-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2016
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