Lizzy is prone to extreme emotions and flights of fancy in this richly illustrated tale. She begins the day scared at the...
A rhyming, read-aloud debut children’s book that tracks the mercurial adventures of a young girl during her first day at a new school.
Lizzy is prone to extreme emotions and flights of fancy in this richly illustrated tale. She begins the day scared at the thought of a brand-new school and is a bit intimidated as she boards the bus: “It’s just so…tall.” Although the school is “so big” and the books are “so wordy,” Lizzy quickly takes over the class by jumping on the desk “and surpised [sic] everyone, / acting out stories— / what crazy good fun!” From then on, Lizzy’s day becomes increasingly outrageous. Learning numbers is “just so...mathemagical,” science is “just so...fizz-astro-fantastical,” learning about animals is “just so...wombatty,” and so on. This fanciful language, combined with the whimsical illustrations, may amuse young children. However, some invented words, such as “oompa-pa chugga-doo-zippidy-la” and “oookie glub-dripping,” may be confusing. Lizzy’s madcap day also includes some low moments, as when she sits alone at lunch: “It’s just so lonely...me only,” she says—a sentiment she repeats at bedtime. But she soon gets up the courage to talk to other kids, immediately making friends, and at bedtime something “fantastical” happens when animals from her day, including a bunny, turtle, and a dog, crawl into her bedroom to snuggle. As a protagonist, Lizzy is a bit of a cipher. For example, she’s intimidated by the tall bus, yet she still bravely climbs the stairs and feels “oh-so-big”; she immediately takes command during the reading lesson, but at lunchtime she’s lonely. The action sequences become frenzied; a science lesson, for example, includes split atoms along with the beakers and test tubes. Indeed, the book’s overall portrayal of school moves from intriguing to disorienting and hysterical, and the illustrations reflect this chaos. Lizzy’s distinctive appearance, meanwhile, includes a hairstyle that falls somewhere between Conan O’Brien’s and Pippi Longstocking’s.Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-9970851-0-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Notable Kids Publishing
Review Posted Online: July 25, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
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