A charming tale sure to pique kids’ interest in Scotland—and tortoises.
Two tortoises make a home with humans near Loch Ness, Scotland, in this rhyming story about a decades-long relationship between a woman and her pets.
Neeps and Tattie, two tortoises, live in a bothy—a small hut—near Loch Ness with an older woman named Annie and her dogs, Angus and Tess. The story flashes back to when Annie adopted the tortoises 52 years earlier, when she was 10. Young Annie builds a small home for them in her garden and takes care of them for decades, both indoors and outdoors, where the tortoises like to play hide-and-seek with the dogs. When the weather cools, Annie brings the pair inside to hibernate in her refrigerator until spring. Johnson and Madden show the joys of long-lived pet ownership in accessible rhyming phrases. Youngsters are likely to chuckle at the refrigerator hibernation in Swartz’s full-color illustrations, which feature two tortoises withdrawn into shells on a tray labeled “Do Not Eat.” Scottish terms such as bothy and loch are explained in a glossary, but readers won’t need definitions to understand the tale. (The meanings behind the tortoises’ names, however, may elicit giggles.) Painted images capture the pastoral setting on Loch Ness and give the straightforward story a whimsical feel, hiding familiar shapes in bushes and clouds.
A charming tale sure to pique kids’ interest in Scotland—and tortoises.Pub Date: April 24, 2023
ISBN: 9781633813472
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Maine Authors Publishing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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
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