A sweet celebration of family and introduction to some perennially popular animals.
A little boy connects with his African-immigrant grandfather over a shared loved of the “big five” animals of Grandpa’s homeland.
On a five-day visit to his grandfather’s house, Danny enjoys the paintings and colorful masks on prominent display. Grandpa commits to teaching Danny about the big five animals, with each one designated to a day throughout Danny’s visit. From Monday through Friday, Danny’s grandfather tells him about elephants, lions, rhinoceroses, leopards, and buffalo, introducing them by their attributes via a guessing game. “The third animal has thick skin and two horns on his nose,” prompts Grandpa, to which Danny responds: “That’s the rhino!” Grandpa then adds, “Do you know what a rhino is good at? Grazing!” Abbot’s colorful illustrations are jovial and heartwarming, adding amusing details, such as a depiction of a smiling rhino with grass drooping from its mouth next to Grandpa and Danny, similarly munching on cucumbers. While talking about these animals, Danny and his grandfather play and learn and make a host of diverse friends along the way. The African country that is Grandpa’s homeland is never specified, but perhaps it is South Africa, where the Dutch author traces part of her heritage. Grandpa has deep brown skin and graying black hair while his grandson has tan skin and fluffy brown hair.
A sweet celebration of family and introduction to some perennially popular animals. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-60537-457-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clavis
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends.
Is it a stormy-night scare or a bedtime book? Both!
Little Blue Truck and his good friend Toad are heading home when a storm lets loose. Before long, their familiar, now very nervous barnyard friends (Goat, Hen, Goose, Cow, Duck, and Pig) squeeze into the garage. Blue explains that “clouds bump and tumble in the sky, / but here inside we’re warm and dry, / and all the thirsty plants below / will get a drink to help them grow!” The friends begin to relax. “Duck said, loud as he could quack it, / ‘THUNDER’S JUST A NOISY RACKET!’ ” In the quiet after the storm, the barnyard friends are sleepy, but the garage is not their home. “ ‘Beep!’ said Blue. ‘Just hop inside. / All aboard for the bedtime ride!’ ” Young readers will settle down for their own bedtimes as Blue and Toad drop each friend at home and bid them a good night before returning to the garage and their own beds. “Blue gave one small sleepy ‘Beep.’ / Then Little Blue Truck fell fast asleep.” Joseph’s rich nighttime-blue illustrations (done “in the style of [series co-creator] Jill McElmurry”) highlight the power of the storm and capture the still serenity that follows. Little Blue Truck has been chugging along since 2008, but there seems to be plenty of gas left in the tank.
A sweet reminder that it’s easy to weather a storm with the company and kindness of friends. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-85213-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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