Problem-solvers and dog lovers alike will pounce on this series.
This opening title for a chapter-book series follows Korean siblings Shawn and Kat Choi as they petsit for Bouncer, an active Jack Russell terrier who loves kimchi.
As the story opens, these characters bound on the scene with a ready-to-play attitude. When the siblings decide to start a doggie day care business, Bouncer is their first customer. Living up to his name, the high-energy pup leaves chewed-up shoes and a half-eaten chicken in his wake. Focusing on his personality, the siblings determine that exercising him at a nearby park curbs his bad behavior. Using kimchi as a reward, they train Bouncer to fetch balls on the tennis court, the baseball field, and the soccer pitch. Each book in this series highlights a different dog breed and the unique care and training required to bring out their best behavior. Publishing simultaneously are Blue Ribbon Pup, about a bichon frisé; Dog Sled Star, about a Siberian husky; and Library Buddy, about a goldendoodle. Set in large, easy-to-read type, the vocabulary is useful and simple, with just a few reach words like “obstacle” and “occasion.” Hanakata’s illustrations, well balanced with the text, depict Bouncer as a cheerfully playful puppy, propelling the action forward with his antics; Shawn and Kat are supported by a diverse cast in which readers of many colors can see themselves reflected.
Problem-solvers and dog lovers alike will pounce on this series. (Fiction. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63163-340-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Jolly Fish Press
Review Posted Online: May 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with...
Reynolds and Brown have crafted a Halloween tale that balances a really spooky premise with the hilarity that accompanies any mention of underwear.
Jasper Rabbit needs new underwear. Plain White satisfies him until he spies them: “Creepy underwear! So creepy! So comfy! They were glorious.” The underwear of his dreams is a pair of radioactive-green briefs with a Frankenstein face on the front, the green color standing out all the more due to Brown’s choice to do the entire book in grayscale save for the underwear’s glowing green…and glow they do, as Jasper soon discovers. Despite his “I’m a big rabbit” assertion, that glow creeps him out, so he stuffs them in the hamper and dons Plain White. In the morning, though, he’s wearing green! He goes to increasing lengths to get rid of the glowing menace, but they don’t stay gone. It’s only when Jasper finally admits to himself that maybe he’s not such a big rabbit after all that he thinks of a clever solution to his fear of the dark. Brown’s illustrations keep the backgrounds and details simple so readers focus on Jasper’s every emotion, writ large on his expressive face. And careful observers will note that the underwear’s expression also changes, adding a bit more creep to the tale.
Perfect for those looking for a scary Halloween tale that won’t leave them with more fears than they started with. Pair with Dr. Seuss’ tale of animate, empty pants. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0298-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
