Dreamy.
A fantastical testament to the joy of seeing yourself in the art you seek out.
A picture-book version of a ballet by the same name, this epic urban sojourn begins at New York City's Central Park Zoo. Three Black dancers, all tutu-wearing members of the Harlem Children’s Ballet, smile broadly before an aquarium enclosure and pose for promotional photographs as a bemused polar bear looks on with interest. Night falls, and the bear heaves itself from its tank and happens upon the signature accessory of our prima ballerina, a cherry red scarf blown from her neck or, just as likely, left behind as a clue. Eager to return the lost treasure, the Arctic creature heads uptown—drawing the ire of cabbies for jaywalking—until it reaches Lincoln Center. Much to the animal’s chagrin, a sign forbidding polar bear patronage has been plastered to the box office plexiglass, but when the bear’s bereft yowl reverberates into the rehearsal space, its resonance draws Red Scarf Girl from her warm-up and into the crowd. Once she’s led the creature to a velvet-swathed seat facing center stage, he sees another familiar face prominently featured in a backdrop alongside the performers—his own. This title is almost entirely wordless, but the captivating balance that Velasquez strikes between realism and ultra-expressive emotion makes a magical meal of the story. Frontmatter offers zoological information about the titular creature; backmatter bookends the tale by providing a biography of Chloe Maldonado, who originated the role of Red Scarf Girl in the real-life ballet.
Dreamy. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
ISBN: 9780823449187
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader!
Fun with friends makes for a great day.
Norbit, a salmon-colored worm with a pink kerchief, joyfully greets the day and everyone he encounters. “Hello, friends! It’s time for fun with the sun! Let’s play!” He and his menagerie of forest pals—including the sun, who grows limbs and descends from the sky—exuberantly engage in various forms of physical activity such as jumping, going down a slide, spinning around, and watching the clouds go by. Young readers will readily relate, as these are games that most children are familiar with. As day turns to night, Norbit says farewell to Sun and welcomes Moon with an invitation to continue the fun. Watkins has created a vivid world of movement and merriment. Her illustrations feature bright bursts of color that match the energy of the text, with most sentences ending in an exclamation point. The author/illustrator incorporates many elements that make for an ideal early-reading experience (despite the use of a contraction or two): art free from clutter, text consisting of words with only one or two syllables, and repetition and recurring bits, such as a continued game of hide-and-seek with Sun. Inspired by never-before-seen sketches from the Dr. Seuss Collection archives at the University of California San Diego, this is the first title for Seuss Studios, a new imprint for original stories from “emerging authors and illustrators” who “honor Seuss’s hallmark spirit of creativity and imagination.”
Say hello to a relatable and rewarding early reader! (author's note) (Early reader. 5-8)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9780593646212
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Seuss Studios
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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