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PORCUPINE AND CACTUS

Name: PORCUPINE AND CACTUS
Author: Katie Frawley
ISBN: 9780593620991

by Katie Frawley ; illustrated by Alex Willmore ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 11, 2024

A silly, entertaining tale of a very prickly friendship.

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Sometimes the best friend is the one who’s willing to listen.

A friendly but solitary young porcupine rises. After saying good morning to the sun, sky, and dirt, this quirky youngster heads out in hopes of finding someone to talk to. What’s that in the distance? A cactus! Pleased to encounter “another spiked specimen” and eager to chat, our hero isn’t bothered by the cactus’s inability to respond. Perhaps the cactus is “the strong, silent type,” the porcupine hypothesizes. Bright, funny, cartoonish illustrations complement the bubbly text as the porcupine enjoys a picnic with the unresponsive cactus, performs magic tricks, and chats on, oblivious. When a bird lands on the cactus, the porcupine asks, “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your plumed pal?” But the bird flies off after pooping on the porcupine, and the protagonist is peeved: “First you won’t even talk to me, and now your friend is rude!” Will the chatterbox porcupine figure out that the cactus is unable to speak? Maybe not, but this cactus may be just what the porcupine needs, and maybe words aren’t everything, after all! Children will delight in the realization that they know more about the cactus than the porcupine does and will laugh out loud at the misunderstandings that ensue.

A silly, entertaining tale of a very prickly friendship. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: June 11, 2024

ISBN: 9780593620991

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Flamingo Books

Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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LIGHTHOUSE AND THE LITTLE BOAT
by Katie Frawley ; illustrated by Ben Mantle

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TABITHA AND FRITZ TRADE PLACES
by Katie Frawley ; illustrated by Laurie Stansfield

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

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A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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THE COOL BEAN MAKES A SPLASH

From the I Can Read! series

by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 26, 2024

Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind.

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The cool beans again step up to do a timorous fellow legume a fava…this time at the pool.

Will a rash decision to tackle the multistory super-slide lead to another embarrassing watery fail for our shy protagonist? Nope, for up the stairs right behind comes a trio of cool beans, each a different type and color, all clad in nothing but dark shades. They make an offer: “It’s not as scary if you go with friends!” As the knobby nerd explains once the thrilling ride down is done, “They all realized that I just needed some encouragement and support.” Just to make sure that both cool and uncool readers get the message, the narrator lets us know that “there are plenty of kind folks who have my back. They’re always there when I need them.” The beany bonhomie doesn’t end at the bottom of the slide, with all gliding down to the shallow end of the pool (“3 INCHES. NO DIVING”) for a splashy finale. This latest early reader starring characters from John and Oswald’s immensely popular Food Group series will be a hit with fans. Fun accessories, such as a bean who rocks pink cat-eye frames, add some pizzazz to the chromatically and somatotypically varied cast.

Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind. (Easy reader. 5-7)