A fun addition to the fractured fairy-tale bookshelf.
A Chinese Little Red Riding Hood meets a dragon in the woods.
A gentle, bespectacled gray wolf would like to set the record straight about the old folktale “about a girl in a red cape.” The real story, the wolf recounts, is about a girl who lived in China in the shadow of the Great Wall. Accompanied by cartoon animation-style art, the tale mimics the Western version of the story, with Chinese cultural details incorporated throughout (for instance, bringing Nǎinai herbal soup and a rice cake) and a big bad dragon as her adversary. Nǎinai gets gobbled up, and Dragon jumps into bed wearing her nightgown and cap. “What large hands you have!” Little Red exclaims. “All the better to hold you with,” Dragon replies. And so on. However, once Little Red has also been gobbled up and no woodsman comes to the rescue, she takes matters into her own hands. Inside Dragon’s stomach, after reuniting with Nǎinai, Little Red finds various items with which to antagonize him, such as a Chinese yo-yo that bounces around and silk ribbons that tickle Dragon’s insides. In a delightful illustration showing the cross section of the creature’s long stomach, Little Red even deploys her kung fu moves. Finally, she splashes the pungent herbal soup about to make the dragon retch, and out comes everything in his stomach. Page compositions and backgrounds may be run-of-the-mill, but the colorful characters, including Dragon, are adorably expressive. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A fun addition to the fractured fairy-tale bookshelf. (author’s note, more information on the items in the dragon’s belly) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3728-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: Sept. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An immersive, charming read and convincing proof again that even small bodies can house stout hearts.
Can knightly deeds bring together a feathered odd couple who are on opposite daily schedules?
Having won over a dragon (and millions of fans) in the Caldecott Honor–winning Knight Owl (2022), the fierce yet impossibly cute nocturnal, armor-clad owlet faces a new challenge—sleep deprivation—in the wake of taking on Early Bird, a trainee who rises with the sun and chatters interminably: “I made pancakes! Do you like pancakes? I love pancakes! Where’s the syrup?” It’s enough to test the patience of even the knightliest of owls, and eventually Knight Owl explodes in anger. But although Early Bird is even smaller than her mentor, she turns out to be just as determined to achieve knighthood. After he tells her to leave, she acquits herself so nobly in a climactic encounter with a pack of wolves that she earns a place at the castle. Denise proves a dab hand at depicting genuinely slinky, scary wolves as well as slipping cheerfully anachronistic newspapers and other sight gags into his realistically wrought medieval settings to underscore the tale’s tongue-in-cheek tone. Better yet, a final view of the doughty duo sitting down together to a lavish pancake breakfast/dinner at dusk ends the episode in a sweet rush of syrup and bonhomie.
An immersive, charming read and convincing proof again that even small bodies can house stout hearts. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9780316564526
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2025
Familiar fare that fans are sure to eagerly snag.
The ever-expanding How To Catch series adds yet another target for young hunters.
Move over, Santa, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and a couple of dozen others: Walstead and Elkerton have another mythical creature in their crosshairs. In this latest installment, a group of diverse campers attempt to capture a shaggy but lovable sasquatch. Bigfoot, whose face is rarely seen and who narrates in verse, emerges from a cozy, elaborate treehouse to investigate a nearby campfire and secure food for a youngster. The scent of s’mores proves a powerful draw, and soon Bigfoot is subjected to the various traps improvised by the kids. Although the campers look “freaked out,” it’s Bigfoot who must run. Snagging a small treat, our narrator (who’s “not SCARY… / just tall and hairy!”) avoids the other lures. Meanwhile, the forest animals accidentally interfere, and the kids struggle with some unworkable options, like a water-spraying robot (delivered to their campsite?). Finally, the campers, realizing that Bigfoot has a child, leave the “Bigfoot Family” a cooler full of food, and Bigfoot happily concludes, “Now my son has all the friends / he could ever really need” (though they never actually interact—still, it’s better than being prey!). Uneven rhythm makes the lines wobbly, though the rhymes generally work. Elkerton uses lots of bird’s-eye perspectives in his usual colorful cartoon style; the wacky hijinks will keep series devotees entertained.
Familiar fare that fans are sure to eagerly snag. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 12, 2025
ISBN: 9781464230776
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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