Another hilarious outing with this deliciously naughty dog.
You got schooled!
Pig the Pug is back for another off-kilter adventure, and this time he’s a doggie school dropout. After off-page antics that leave his owner’s home a mess, Pig is shipped off to Big Jean’s Dog Obedience School, where the institution’s “No job too tough” motto finally meets its match. Pig joins a cohort of equally uncouth pups but doesn’t advance further than the first lesson before he organizes a revolt. Mayhem ensues, and Pig ends up looking like his namesake after an accident with a few pink cakes and a tank of flammable gas. Thankfully, though, some lessons were learned and the book ends on a positive note. The story and the illustrations—rendered in acrylic with pens and pencils—are just as zany as readers would expect, and educators and librarians will revel in reading the book aloud. The plot moves at a breakneck pace; as a result, Big Jean, a stern, light-skinned woman with a heap of purple curls, isn’t developed, which is unfortunate as the character radiates interest and seems like a funny foil for the mischievous pug. Instead, the focus stays solely on Pig, whose reaction shots and bug-eyed horror at the thought of behaving will have readers giggling long after the book is finished. One sour spot is a visual joke that implies cultural insensitivity among Pig’s bad dog behaviors; it appears to be a reference to a previous title in the series, but without context it may confuse readers unfamiliar with the series. This issue aside, Pig is a bad pug whom children will want to read about again and again. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Another hilarious outing with this deliciously naughty dog. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-85919-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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