A celebration of bravery against a big bully—though picky eaters might sympathize with the shark.
Confronting a toothy shark, a young pearl diver displays courage, cleverness, and a compelling counteroffensive.
A brown-skinned child in a red wetsuit, her hair in two puffs, leaps from a boat wearing a mask and a diving tube. Reaching the “very bitty bottom of the deep blue sea,” she spies a pearl for her net—just as a sizable shark surges up. His extremely broad grin is hungry, not friendly. But the plucky girl strikes a deal with him: She’ll provide the shark with an alternative seafood dinner or else be his main course. The tasting menu of options includes “a squid with her kid,” frilly jellyfish, puffer fish, and a stingray. Each proves violently indigestible and is promptly ejected, with assorted sound effects: “OUCH! AAH! ICK! SPIT! BLAH!” As in Bernstrom’s One Day in the Eucalyptus, Eucalyptus Tree, illustrated by Brendan Wenzel (2016), regurgitation reigns. In a desperate bid, the girl convinces the shark to try a turtle, whose shell shatters his teeth. Deal over, he goes to “CHOMP!” her, but she blocks his mouth with her net and bears the pearl triumphantly away, safely rejoining her parent in the boat. This neon cartoon version of a reef, all soft edges, looks like a rainbow garden, until we see its dangerous inhabitants, pastel but perilous. Goofy details such as the shark’s ridiculous pink tongue support the upbeat emphasis on the rollicking rhythm and rhymes and the vibrant undersea setting.
A celebration of bravery against a big bully—though picky eaters might sympathize with the shark. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 29, 2025
ISBN: 9781662640827
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Hippo Park/Astra Books for Young Readers
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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