Otis is a dog, but that doesn’t mean he’s immune to an insult hurled his way by a passing bully, a spike-collared boxer with a sneer on his mug. “Big Ears” is what the boxer calls Otis. Well, Otis does have biggish ears, and they seem to be growing by the instant as Otis gazes at them in the reflection of a store window. Otis’s day is shattered. He doesn’t want to play with his chums; he doesn’t want to chase the neighborhood cats. By the time he gets home from his walk, he’s in a swivet. What is he going to do about his terrible, monstrous ears? Roll them into curls? Twist them into a pile atop his head? Bury his head in the sand and never go outside again? He crawls into his bed, ready to bathe in his misery, when the girl who owns him comes to snuggle. She parks her head next to his, covers it with one of his ears, and whispers, “I love your large, silky, fabulous ears, Otis.” The next day dawns bright and the structural damage done to Otis’s self-image is a thing of the past. He sidles out the door, into the park, and when the boxer shouts “Fat Face!” at him, he shrugs it off: “I don’t think so.” Terrific—a dazzling combination of humorous, liquid writing and old-fashioned, tinted line drawings, certain to find a home with anyone who needs a shot of confidence-building. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-385-72911-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.
A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.
He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts. When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
Sweet and silly—good enough for Halloween
The barnyard animals love Halloween. Farmer Brown does not. Sounds like the perfect time for tricks and treats!
Since Farmer Brown wants nothing to do with the scary holiday, “he leaves a bowl of candy on the porch….draws the shades and locks the door.” Out in the barn, though, the party is just getting started. Saturated watercolors show Cow dressed as a skeleton, the chickens looking quite ghostly and the sheep donning witch hats. As field mice and cats arrive, creepy sounds begin. The “crunch, crunch, crunching” and the “creak, creak, creaking” lead to a “tap, tap, tapping.” Hearing them, Farmer Brown peeks out his window to investigate. Readers will chuckle and easily recognize “the dark creature standing beneath the trees.” The farmer, however, runs to his bedroom to pull the covers up over his head. Now the sounds repeat, as the figure comes closer. This time, though, the tapping is followed by a “quack, quack, quackle.” Wait—“Quackle??” Farmer Brown goes out to the porch to find the candy bowl gone and a note on the door announcing, “Halloween Party at the barn!” The chorus of onomatopoeic phrases throughout the briskly paced text guarantees an interactive read-aloud, though fans of Duck’s earlier outings will miss their satiric bite.
Sweet and silly—good enough for Halloween . (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4424-6553-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2013
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