Dramatic and accessible for new readers.
Fox’s adventure—going out to sea in a box equipped with a sail—is exciting and easy to read.
Ivinson tells her story in 46 simple words. Five or fewer words appear on each double-page spread in a generous font set against the bright seaside scenes of Fox’s exploits. While other animals seem to have real boats, small dinghies in which they are messing about on the ocean, Fox has only a box. Fox has an expressive face, bright reddish-orange fur, and a big bushy tail, and they sport a blue-striped sailor shirt without pants. Determined to set sail, Fox pushes out to sea, bushy tail for a rudder, just as dark clouds brew into a storm. A small mouse goes along for the voyage. Ivinson’s full-color acrylic-paint artwork calls attention to itself in an interesting way, reproduced so that brush strokes and the grain and texture of canvas are clearly shown. One effect is to encourage viewers to slow down, though another is to create a slightly static feel in what is clearly a lively adventure. Still, the paintings of storm, waves, and the small boat and occupants alone on a vast expanse of sea are pretty thrilling, as is the rescue by a big blue whale, and varying perspectives keep the action going.
Dramatic and accessible for new readers. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: May 21, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-284287-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...
A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.
As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery.
A troop of cats traverse a spooky landscape as they make their way to a party hosted by ghosts.
Each double-page spread shows the felines’ encounters with the likes of an owl, jack-o’-lanterns or a bat. One or two of these creepy meetings may be too abstract for the youngest readers, as the cats hear eerie noises with no discernible source on the page. The text, which consists of one rhyming couplet per scene, mostly scans despite a couple of wobbles: “Five black cats get a bit of a scare / As the flip-flapping wings of a bat fill the air.” The sleek, slightly retro art, likely created using a computer, depicts the cats cavorting at night through a shadowy cityscape, the countryside and a haunted house; they may scare some toddlers and delight others. A brighter color palette would have given the project a friendlier, more universal appeal. Luckily, the well-lit, final party scene provides a playful conclusion.
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-58925-611-8
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
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