A strikingly illustrated, innovative story of human evolution at the intersections of science and art.
A love letter to humans, all of whom originated in Africa.
Told in second person by Africa herself, this evolution story opens with images of landscapes as the narrator announces, “I am the mother of all humanity / I have a long history and a longer memory.” What she remembers most of all is “you, / my offspring of all colors / in all corners of the earth.” In beautifully evocative free verse, she reminds us of “our timeless bond,” and as she progresses through time, the illustrations show different landforms and then a hominid sitting in the mouth of a cave. The narrator emphasizes humans’ survival and the things Mother Africa provided that enabled them to live through difficult conditions: caves for shelter, forests for food, intelligence to outwit predators. Lewis’ gorgeous, dreamlike watercolors sharpen as they move closer to contemporary life. The book’s title has a double meaning: In one image, a lioness closes in on a swift-moving herd of gazelles while the narrator articulates her love for these animals, “but,” she says, “you, child, are my pride.” By labeling humans with the collective noun for lions, Africa claims all of us as her family and also makes clear that we are the creation of which she is proudest—an inspired use of wordplay. An appended evolutionary timeline will spark further scientific research. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A strikingly illustrated, innovative story of human evolution at the intersections of science and art. (Informational picture book. 4-10)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-63592-387-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Astra Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Warp back in time for a prehistoric spinoff adventure with Geronimo Stilton’s ancestor, Geronimo Stiltonoot, in Old Mouse City.
Readers will find Geronimo Stiltonoot a familiar character, outfitted differently from descendant Stilton yet still running a newspaper and having wild adventures. In this introduction to prehistoric mouse life, someone has stolen the most powerful and important artifact housed by the Old Mouse City Mouseum: the Stone of Fire. It’s up to Stiltonoot and his fellow sleuth and friend, Hercule Poirat, to uncover not only the theft, but a dangerous plot that jeopardizes all of Old Mouse City. As stand-ins for the rest of the Stilton cast, Stiltonoot has in common with Stilton a cousin named Trap, a sister named Thea and a nephew named Benjamin. The slapstick comedy and design, busy with type changes and color, will be familiar for Stilton readers. The world is fictionalized for comedic effect, featuring funny uses for dinosaurs and cheeky references to how far back in time they are, with only the occasional sidebar that presents facts. The story takes a bit long to get started, spending a lot of time reiterating the worldbuilding information laid out before the first chapter. But once it does start, it is an adventure Stilton readers will enjoy. Geronimo Stiltonoot has the right combination of familiarity and newness to satisfy Stilton fans. (Fiction. 6-10)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-545-44774-4
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
Innocuous adventuring on the smallest of scales.
The Mouse and the Motorcycle (1965) upgrades to The Mice and the Rolls-Royce.
In Windsor Castle there sits a “dollhouse like no other,” replete with working plumbing, electricity, and even a full library of real, tiny books. Called Queen Mary’s Dollhouse, it also plays host to the Whiskers family, a clan of mice that has maintained the house for generations. Henry Whiskers and his cousin Jeremy get up to the usual high jinks young mice get up to, but when Henry’s little sister Isabel goes missing at the same time that the humans decide to clean the house up, the usually bookish big brother goes on the adventure of his life. Now Henry is driving cars, avoiding cats, escaping rats, and all before the upcoming mouse Masquerade. Like an extended version of Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Two Bad Mice (1904), Priebe keeps this short chapter book constantly moving, with Duncan’s peppy art a cute capper. Oddly, the dollhouse itself plays only the smallest of roles in this story, and no factual information on the real Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is included at the tale’s end (an opportunity lost).
Innocuous adventuring on the smallest of scales. (Fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-6575-5
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
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