In a gleeful salute to the frosty season, three wide-eyed and rosy-cheeked children and their little gray puppy spend the day sampling the pleasures of winter. With sprightly verse, Carr (Swine Divine, p. 373, etc.) captures the rapture of a snowy day spent in play. The venturesome children build a snowman, go for a hair-raising sled ride, and take a twirl around the ice. The frolicking may be done for the day as the final pages depict the three asleep by the fire, but readers know that tomorrow will bring fresh adventures. Colorful, full-page illustrations complement the text; Donohue’s cut-paper collages incorporate a variety of textures to create vivid, dimensional images of the cheerful tots and their trusty canine companion. This exhilarating picture book joyously heralds the imminent arrival of winter. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1462-0
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1999
Miranda’s book counts the monsters gathering at a birthday party, while a simple rhyming text keeps the tally and surveys the action: “Seven starved monsters are licking the dishes./Eight blow out candles and make birthday wishes.” The counting proceeds to ten, then by tens to fifty, then gradually returns to one, which makes the monster’s mother, a purple pin-headed octopus, very happy. The book is surprisingly effective due to Powell’s artwork; the color has texture and density, as if it were poured onto the page, but the real attention-getter is the singularity of every monster attendee. They are highly individual and, therefore, eminently countable. As the numbers start crawling upward, it is both fun and a challenge to try to recognize monsters who have appeared in previous pages, or to attempt to stay focused when counting the swirling or bunched creatures. The story has glints of humor, and in combination with the illustrations is a grand addition to the counting shelf. (Picture book. 3-8)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201835-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 1999
The Pumpkin Book (32 pp.; $16.95; Sept. 15; 0-8234-1465-5): From seed to vine and blossom to table, Gibbons traces the growth cycle of everyone’s favorite autumn symbol—the pumpkin. Meticulous drawings detail the transformation of tiny seeds to the colorful gourds that appear at roadside stands and stores in the fall. Directions for planting a pumpkin patch, carving a jack-o’-lantern, and drying the seeds give young gardeners the instructions they need to grow and enjoy their own golden globes. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 15, 1999
ISBN: 0-8234-1465-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
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