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GRADUATION GIRL!

From the Very Fairy Princess series

Though the cover is bedecked in sparkles, Gerry’s sparkle is just as internal as it is external—her essential...

A little girl with a style and sparkle all her own worries about the end of the school year.

As Gerry narrates the last few days of the school year, she points out the attributes of a fairy princess (which she is) and frets about next year (as if missing the wonderful Miss Pym, who lets her wear her wings and crown in class, her classroom and their class pet aren’t enough, her new teacher is a man!). “To be honest, I’m having a hard time finding my sparkle about this. (Change is HARD…even for a fairy princess.)” Siblings reading this to their younger sisters (and perhaps brothers) may be reminded of Junie B. Jones—Gerry’s voice is certainly filled with determination, and she is a girl who knows herself. But she lacks Junie’s attitude and childlike voice, channeling more of a Fancy Nancy; when her dad makes pancakes, she can hardly eat three: “(Even a fairy princess can lose her appetite when she’s stressed).” In the end, a tense moment during the graduation ceremony resolves itself in the best way possible and puts all of Gerry’s fears about first grade to rest. Davenier’s ink-and–colored-pencil illustrations neatly capture Gerry’s feelings, making them stand out against the rest of her class’ more joyful faces.

Though the cover is bedecked in sparkles, Gerry’s sparkle is just as internal as it is external—her essential self-confidence shines. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: April 8, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-316-21960-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014

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LOVE FROM THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR

Safe to creep on by.

Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.

In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.

Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap

Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)

Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024

ISBN: 9780593702901

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024

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