A well-told story of an act of biblical and historical significance.
A lesson in responsibility and kindness, divinely noted.
Brown-skinned Moses, a shepherd, is reclining against a tree when he sees one of the lambs scamper off. He leaves his dog with the flock and goes off in pursuit, but the lamb is fleet of foot. Moses frets about the wandering lamb but keeps up the search despite the heat. It is a long pursuit through rock and bush and desert, the sound of the lamb’s bleating his only guide. At last, at the bank of a stream, he catches up with the little animal, who is busy drinking, and carries her back to her mother. God has been watching and at this moment determines that Moses is the one “to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.” The author, in a note preceding the story, attributes this tale to the midrash Shemot Rabbah 2:2, a rabbinical commentary on the Book of Exodus. Swirls of browns and blues depict the colors of the vast desert and sky with colorful leaves, bushes, and streams adding to the scenery. Though simple, this one is sure to spark conversation; it can be shared not only in anticipation of or during Passover, but also to open up discussion of duty.
A well-told story of an act of biblical and historical significance. (Religious picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781728445540
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Kar-Ben
Review Posted Online: Feb. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
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
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
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