Stunning, tender, and brilliant. Readers will laugh and cry—but most of all love.
A dog savors one last outing with his little girl, remembering puppyhood and simple pleasures before passing, while their love lives on, enriching and inspiring new adventures as they unfold.
Floppy-eared and graying, an old dog rises to still find wonder in the world—from the fireball sun and puffer clouds to the swirly wind and a good old stretch—but it’s his forever friend, Little, who makes him “wigglewag” with joy. As the brown-skinned child with her black mop of hair calls out “Letsgoboy!” memories of leaping and chasing squirrels surface. The dog gazes upon this remarkable world and “wuffwuffs” his farewells, and Little gives him her tightest “lovesqueeze.” Under a luminous sky, he closes his eyes, and twilight blue bursts into a dazzling kaleidoscope, and he can “runjump” again. He sees the family mourn and the seasons change, until one spring Little is on a “letsgoboy” with a new puppy. Happy to feel her joy, he joins her in spirit, knowing they are each other’s friends forever. Mixed-media illustrations masterfully play with scale, composition, and perspective; and Chien’s use of simple, exploratory shapes and patterns creates enchanting characters and landscapes full of energy, peace, and transformation. Told from the dog’s perspective, the playful and poignant text offers an arc beautifully visualized by Chien, whose palette choices flex with the narrative. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Stunning, tender, and brilliant. Readers will laugh and cry—but most of all love. (Picture book. 3-adult)Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7716-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.
One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.
It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.
A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: July 7, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-553-51233-5
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Robin Corey/Random
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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