Look elsewhere for ninja fun—perhaps to Arree Chung’s Ninja and its sequel, Ninja! Attack of the Clan (2014, 2016).
The Master and the students from Dojo Daycare (2014) and Dojo Daytrip (2015) return for their third adventure.
Master, enjoying a snooze, wakes to strange noises and screams, “AAAH!”—over and over again, as the noises keep coming. Observant readers will, of course, see the reasons for the noises. The young students (a racially diverse bunch judging by swatches of skin and tufts of hair protruding from their ninja masks) are staging a surprise birthday party complete with hats, cake, and noisemakers. Told in rhyming verse, the story is amusing and pleasurable to read aloud. Children will enjoy seeing Master, the dojo's nominal adult, so very thrown by the secretive antics of his charges. Flat, digital figures cavort against white backdrops, brightly colored party paraphernalia and toys contrasting with the ninjas' black suits (even the Master's teddy bear sports one). The Master’s face is solid yellow and features a drooping, mouth-framing mustache that may bring Fu Manchu to mind; this visual association with an old racial stereotype is an unfortunate one.
Look elsewhere for ninja fun—perhaps to Arree Chung’s Ninja and its sequel, Ninja! Attack of the Clan (2014, 2016). (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-77147-143-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
Lighthearted and un-scary enough for bedtime.
Talk show host Fallon and illustrator Deas follow up 5 More Sleeps ’Til Christmas (2020) with a story of a youngster preparing for Halloween.
“It’s FIVE more sleeps ’til Halloween, / that spooky time of year / where all the ghosts are wide awake / as nighttime’s drawing near.” A calendar page with a large numeral 5 curls before a bright orange pumpkin. An orange-haired, light-skinned moppet wearing an enormous pair of blue glasses is hunkered down in bed with Gary the dog, whose vibrant blue coloring matches the bedspread. Occasionally accompanied by a sibling, the young narrator counts down day by day, describing seasonal activities: picking out a costume, navigating a corn maze, watching scary movies, taking part in a parade, going on a hayride, and trick-or-treating. The rhyming verses are sometimes a bit rocky but always fun. The text is periodically punctuated by the word boo, which appears in large, cartoonlike lettering; that, along with the calendar countdown motif, adds a pleasant repetition. Though the child confides feelings of trepidation (“What if bats fly in my room? / I think I’ll close my window now”), descriptions of scary moments are always offset by brightly colored, exuberant artwork. Humor abounds: Gary looks both hilarious and sweet dressed in a ghost costume that matches the narrator’s. The final page neatly closes the circle as the child goes from anticipating the holiday to participating in it and back again.
Lighthearted and un-scary enough for bedtime. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9781250857798
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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