A child’s staunch refusal to eat her peas and her mother’s elaborate enticement is the basis for this zany but telling tale. Readers will instantly recognize the scenario: Daisy sits at the table facing down “the little green balls that were ganging up on her plate” while her frazzled mother attempts to get her to eat. A seemingly harmless proposition of ice cream as a reward begins an avalanche of absurdity as Daisy’s desperate mother soon offers all kinds of outrageous treats. “If you eat your peas, you can have 48 dishes of ice cream, stay up past midnight, you never have to wash again, I’ll buy you two new bikes, and a baby elephant.” However, “I don’t like peas,” remains Daisy’s steadfast reply. The predicament is resolved as Daisy slyly negotiates that she will eat her peas if her mom eats her own untouched Brussels sprouts—at which point they agree to eat some ice cream instead. Sharratt’s (The Time It Took Tom, 2000, etc.) colorful, computer-aided illustrations humorously underscore the hilarity of the situation. Each time Daisy’s mom offers a bribe, a picture of the item appears next to the text; consequently, as she offers more and more bribes, her image shrinks accordingly to accommodate the pictures and text. Conversely, the image of Daisy looms larger as she gains more control. Parents and caregivers may inwardly cringe, but preschoolers will love the increasingly exorbitant bribes Daisy’s mom proffers. While this may not convert any readers into avid pea fans, the underlying message that everyone has individual tastes should help to diffuse dinnertime tensions. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-7894-2667-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2000
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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