by Yuyi Morales & illustrated by Yuyi Morales ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2003
Winking and nodding as she goes, a Latino grandmother will charm readers as she charms Death Himself in this original counting-cum-trickster tale. When skeletal Señor Calavera appears at the door, Grandma Beetle bids him wait while she sweeps ONE house (“UNO”), makes TWO pots of tea (“DOS”), grinds THREE pounds of corn for tortillas (“TRES”), and so on, culminating in a festive birthday party at which Señor Calavera finds himself guest number TEN (“DIEZ”). As Grandma, round and brown, with sparkles in her eyes and gray hair both, bustles about, the expression on Señor Calavera’s sugar-skull face grows more and more hilariously impatient—but by party’s end, he’s departed, leaving a thank-you note promising to be back for Grandma Beetle’s next birthday. Lit with dancing lines and warm colors, Morales’s illustrations enhance the appeal of this winning story even further. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-8118-3758-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2003
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by Yuyi Morales ; illustrated by Yuyi Morales
by Rob Scotton & illustrated by Rob Scotton ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2005
Scotton makes a stylish debut with this tale of a sleepless sheep—depicted as a blocky, pop-eyed, very soft-looking woolly with a skinny striped nightcap of unusual length—trying everything, from stripping down to his spotted shorts to counting all six hundred million billion and ten stars, twice, in an effort to doze off. Not even counting sheep . . . well, actually, that does work, once he counts himself. Dawn finds him tucked beneath a rather-too-small quilt while the rest of his flock rises to bathe, brush and riffle through the Daily Bleat. Russell doesn’t have quite the big personality of Ian Falconer’s Olivia, but more sophisticated fans of the precocious piglet will find in this art the same sort of daffy urbanity. Quite a contrast to the usual run of ovine-driven snoozers, like Phyllis Root’s Ten Sleepy Sheep, illustrated by Susan Gaber (2004). (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-059848-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2005
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by Rob Scotton & illustrated by Rob Scotton
by Chris Paul ; illustrated by Courtney Lovett ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 10, 2023
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
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by Chris Paul & illustrated by Frank Morrison
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