A band of five cartoon bluebirds travel the world in search of record-setting bird species—the fastest, best mimic, highest flying, pinkest and more. This third in a series, which began with The BLUES Go Birding Across America (2010), continues to promote bird-watching among young readers through the antics of bluebirds musicians Bing, Lulu, Uno, Eggbert and Sammi—each with identifiable characteristics and easily distinguished from the more realistic birds illustrated on the pages. Each of the dozen species is introduced in the narrative and described further through entries in a nature notebook and a field guide. “Extra Extremes” mention species that set similar records. Some of the birds may be familiar to young readers—the peregrine falcon, emperor penguin and ostrich, for instance—but others will be new. Their trip ends with a sighting of the horned sungem hummingbird in Brazil, an opportunity for the authors to promote an upcoming volume about the rain forest. The band’s trip is mapped at the end on a world map with labeled continents; a handy list reviews the species and notes where they were sighted. The facts have been vetted by a birding expert, sources are given in the acknowledgements and birding closer to home is encouraged. This is a clever extension of the series, taking advantage of children’s interest in records and in Xtreme sports of all kinds. (Informational picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58469-133-4
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Dawn Publications
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2011
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
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
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