A delightful work with a wise message about self-care.
In Mitropoulos’ picture book, a young frog tries to balance helping friends with having time for himself.
Frogathan “Frog” Spots learns there will be an obstacle course at his town’s fair. He makes a small rock mountain in his backyard and prepares to jump it, saying, “Ready...set....” Then his friend Mole interrupts by yelling, “FROG!” Startled, Frog knocks the rock pile down. Mole wants him to help get an apple from the top of a tree. Later, Giraffe interrupts to ask for help putting on a hat. After that, he’s called to assist his friend Kitten. Later, Frog doesn’t want to compete in the obstacle course because he hasn’t trained enough. His mother wisely points out that he practiced when he jumped and climbed while helping his pals; she also notes that it’s “ok to say no sometimes” to others’ requests. Over the course of this picture book, Mitropoulos creates a charming story that promotes friendship and recommends being kind to others as well as oneself. In addition, Mitropoulos offers a portrayal of the outcome of the obstacle course event that provides another valuable lesson. Throughout, Watson’s cartoon illustrations are bright and detailed, and their vivid color enhances the overall story.
A delightful work with a wise message about self-care.Pub Date: March 14, 2023
ISBN: 9798987462607
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Set Sail Press LLC
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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