Readers will empathize with this pig and hopefully learn to not give up.
Thirteen is a natural problem-solver, which is handy since his mom’s got only 12 teats.
Thirteen is a pink-speckled pig who resembles his siblings save for the patch over one eye and the star-shaped spot on his side. When he comes upon a problem, he puzzles out a solution, because even though he’s small, he believes he can be helpful, as when he rescues a child’s ball from a muddy puddle. But when it comes to his own problem, the solution isn’t so easy. His 12 siblings won’t budge, and his mother snores on despite his plaintive cries. Shedding a few tears makes him feel better, but he can’t get discouraged. A lesson in sharing (or not!) comes from a calf. The rescued ball proves just the distraction he needs to get his mother all to himself. The final wordless page shows all the animals bedded down for the night, a rather forlorn Thirteen left out of the shelter awake. The text is a bit stilted: “Thirteen feels that happiness makes you want to sing. But not yet. Later. Now, he has to fill his tummy.” The green grass and tan and brown of the farmyard background the illustrations of the adorable piglets, and the antics of the chicks and their exasperated mother will make observant kids (and their parents) chuckle. Thirteen’s star helps readers pick him out, though it has a tendency to move around. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Readers will empathize with this pig and hopefully learn to not give up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-990252-15-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Milky Way Picture Books
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way.
All the typical worries and excuses kids have about school are filtered through Willems’ hysterical, bus-loving Pigeon.
Told mostly in speech balloons, the bird’s monologue will have kids (and their caregivers) in stitches at Pigeon’s excuses. From already knowing everything (except whatever question readers choose to provide in response to “Go ahead—ask me a question. / Any question!”) to fearing learning too much (“My head might pop off”), Pigeon’s imagination has run wild. Readers familiar with Pigeon will recognize the muted, matte backgrounds that show off the bird’s shenanigans so well. As in previous outings, Willems varies the size of the pigeon on the page to help communicate emotion, the bird teeny small on the double-page spread that illustrates the confession that “I’m… / scared.” And Pigeon’s eight-box rant about all the perils of school (“The unknown stresses me out, dude”) is marvelously followed by the realization (complete with lightbulb thought bubble) that school is the place for students to practice, with experts, all those skills they don’t yet have. But it is the ending that is so Willems, so Pigeon, and so perfect. Pigeon’s last question is “Well, HOW am I supposed to get there, anyway!?!” Readers will readily guess both the answer and Pigeon’s reaction.
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-04645-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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