While the tale’s not for sensitive youngsters, more sophisticated readers will appreciate the joke when Otto decides next on...
Otto the rabbit demonstrates that it is possible to have too much of a good thing.
Trixie the rabbit wears only red shoes. Willie the rabbit is never without his blue roller skates. Not to be outdone, Otto decides on carrots. He will eat only carrots: “Raw carrots, cooked carrots, / fried carrots, baked carrots.” Otto's enthusiasm is depicted in a series of thumbnail drawings, even as his family tries to reason with him. Careful readers will find the speech balloon that warns, “You’ll turn into a carrot!” This is no gentle exploration of food fixation such as those found in the classic Bread and Jam for Frances or Delicious! (2007), Helen Cooper's friendly romp about a fussy eater. In Otto’s case, events take a decidedly ominous turn when his obsession changes him—literally: His ears become carrots. Trixie and Willie want to nibble them. Worse, his classmates dub him Otto Carrotto and surround him, each wanting a bite of his ears. Chaotic collage art captures the frenzied mood—even turning to white line on black at its darkest moment. Boldface text stresses the word repetition and helps set the pace as Otto decides no more carrots.
While the tale’s not for sensitive youngsters, more sophisticated readers will appreciate the joke when Otto decides next on spinach, only spinach. (Picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: July 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5393-6
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: June 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2011
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
Charming.
An assortment of unusual characters form friendships and help each other become their best selves.
Mr. and Mrs. Tupper, who live at Number 3 Ramshorn Drive, are antiquarians. Their daughter, Jillian, loves and cares for a plant named Ivy, who has “three speckles on each leaf and three letters in her name.” Toasty, the grumpy goldfish, lives in an octagonal tank and wishes he were Jillian’s favorite; when Arthur the spider arrives inside an antique desk, he brings wisdom and insight. Ollie the violet plant, Louise the bee, and Sunny the canary each arrive with their own quirks and problems to solve. Each character has a distinct personality and perspective; sometimes they clash, but more often they learn to empathize, see each other’s points of view, and work to help one another. They also help the Tupper family with bills and a burglar. The Fan brothers’ soft-edged, old-fashioned, black-and-white illustrations depict Toasty and Arthur with tiny hats; Ivy and Ollie have facial expressions on their plant pots. The Tuppers have paper-white skin and dark hair. The story comes together like a recipe: Simple ingredients combine, transform, and rise into something wonderful. In its matter-of-fact wisdom, rich vocabulary (often defined within the text), hint of magic, and empathetic nonhuman characters who solve problems in creative ways, this delightful work is reminiscent of Ferris by Kate DiCamillo, Our Friend Hedgehog by Lauren Castillo, and Ivy Lost and Found by Cynthia Lord and Stephanie Graegin.
Charming. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: May 27, 2025
ISBN: 9781665942485
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
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