This silly romp is sure to elicit giggles while promoting emotional intelligence.
This kid learns to really hug it out.
An unnamed protagonist with black hair and light brown skin watches in surprise as a gray tabby hacks a hairball and announces, “I don’t feel well.” Sympathetic, the kid replies, “Do you want a hug?”—unwittingly initiating the formation of a line of animals in want of a hug. The text is limited to spare dialogue in speech bubbles, and so it is the lively illustrations that largely carry the plot. The first handful of furry friends are gentle, with a dog and a pair of ducks against a pastel watercolor backdrop. As the action escalates, so does the choice of animals, which include a skunk, a porcupine, a bear, and a sneaky tiger who attempts to make a snack out of the tabby. As the obscurity and size of the animals comically escalate, so do the kid’s reactions. Generously, the kid acquiesces to each request despite the personal toll. The kid’s appearance and reactions, however, go from neat through frazzled to full-out disheveled, with frayed hair and stained clothes. Eventually an eclectic ensemble of demanding creatures, complete with a fiery dragon, provokes the beleaguered protagonist to yell, “STOP!” After this eruption, the tabby helps the kid find peace—with a hug, of course. Short and sweet, the book gently guides readers to find balance between helping others while acknowledging their own emotional needs. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 69.4% of actual size.)
This silly romp is sure to elicit giggles while promoting emotional intelligence. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5253-0206-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
Sadly, the storytelling runs aground.
A little red sleigh has big Christmas dreams.
Although the detailed, full-color art doesn’t anthropomorphize the protagonist (which readers will likely identify as a sled and not a sleigh), a close third-person text affords the object thoughts and feelings while assigning feminine pronouns. “She longed to become Santa’s big red sleigh,” reads an early line establishing the sleigh’s motivation to leave her Christmas-shop home for the North Pole. Other toys discourage her, but she perseveres despite creeping self-doubt. A train and truck help the sleigh along, and when she wishes she were big, fast, and powerful like them, they offer encouragement and counsel patience. When a storm descends after the sleigh strikes out on her own, an unnamed girl playing in the snow brings her to a group of children who all take turns riding the sleigh down a hill. When the girl brings her home, the sleigh is crestfallen she didn’t reach the North Pole. A convoluted happily-ever-after ending shows a note from Santa that thanks the sleigh for giving children joy and invites her to the North Pole next year. “At last she understood what she was meant to do. She would build her life up spreading joy, one child at a time.” Will she leave the girl’s house to be gifted to other children? Will she stay and somehow also reach ever more children? Readers will be left wondering. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 31.8% of actual size.)
Sadly, the storytelling runs aground. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-72822-355-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
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