A winning tale of two pals engaged in a safely silly competition.
Two foxes challenge each other and become friends in this beginning reader.
A white fox and a red fox are startled to realize that they’re both named “Fox.” The red fox is determined to show off all of its foxy skills: It’s sneaky, it can do tricks, and it can jump. It’s clear from the white fox’s delighted expression that, far from being intimidated by the red fox’s impressive talents, the white fox finds them positively wonderful and wants to play together. If the red fox grinds down a stairway on its skateboard (wearing a helmet, of course), then the white fox applauds, appearing genuinely pleased—before upping the ante by soaring through the air on a snowboard. Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed a rocket pack on the title page, and indeed, the slightly competitive play of Fox and Fox escalates (literally). Two sparsely illustrated double-page spreads complete the cheery rise and fall of their competition. “Two characters are friends” is a classic of the limited-vocabulary beginning reader for a reason, and the lovely artwork, sketched out in simple lines, does the well-trodden tropes justice. The red fox’s superciliousness and the white fox’s indefatigable happiness come through clearly. Visuals and text featuring repetition and simplicity will charm while building reading skills.
A winning tale of two pals engaged in a safely silly competition. (Early reader. 4-6)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780063277939
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
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