Once the surprise is revealed, there’s not much excitement left.
How can you obey a rule when there’s a mystery to solve?
It’s Christmas Eve, and there is one very important rule that must be followed: You can’t peek at your presents until Mommy and Daddy are up and about. Three siblings get ready for a cozy night, but two of them hear a loud squeak coming from downstairs. When they go to investigate, the other one, the book’s narrator, suspects them of ulterior motives. To stop them from repeating the trick, the narrator makes a bed on an armchair at the base of the stairs. No matter how many times the two kids get sent back upstairs, the squeaking keeps happening. Finally, the narrator can’t deny the incessant sounds coming from below the Christmas tree. The children all discover what was making the noise just as their parents appear. This quick and simple tale, told mostly through dialogue among the kids, plays on sibling dynamics. The very straightforward premise provides little in the way of nuance and inventiveness, but younger readers may find it somewhat amusing. The lighthearted, cartoon style of the illustrations makes for some fun moments, especially through the sound-effect balloons. The narrator is light-skinned with reddish-orange hair, the other siblings are brown-skinned and dark-haired, one of the parents is light-skinned and blond, and the other parent is dark-haired and brown-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Once the surprise is revealed, there’s not much excitement left. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-328-80959-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree.
A Christmas edition of the beloved alphabet book.
The story starts off nearly identically to Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989), written by John Archambault and the late Bill Martin Jr, with the letters A, B, and C deciding to meet in the branches of a tree. This time, they’re attempting to scale a Christmas tree, not a coconut tree, and the letters are strung together like garland. A, B, and C are joined by the other letters, and of course they all “slip, slop, topple, plop!” right down the tree. At the bottom, they discover an assortment of gifts, all in a variety of shapes. As a team, the letters and presents organize themselves to get back up on the Christmas tree and get a star to the top. Holiday iterations of favorite tales often fall flat, but this take succeeds. The gifts are an easy way to reinforce another preschool concept—shapes—and the text uses just enough of the original to be familiar. The rhyming works, sticking to the cadence of the source material. The illustrations pay homage to the late Lois Ehlert’s, featuring the same bold block letters, though they lack some of the whimsy and personality of the original. Otherwise, everything is similarly brightly colored and simply drawn. Those familiar with the classic will be drawn to this one, but newcomers can enjoy it on its own.
A successful swap from coconut tree to Christmas tree. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781665954761
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
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