Fits the bill for readers whose own best buds have been lost to school.
Exuberant Puppy and bored Bear meet one day under the gnarled oak, and from then on, they are the best of friends. But will school put an end to their friendship?
Catch, chase, hide-and-seek, ear-flapping bike rides, plank-walking pirate adventures, and splashes in the creek—this duo does it all over the course of a marvelous summer. But then one morning Bear doesn’t come to the oak to play. When he finally does appear, he’s wearing a backpack and rushing so he won’t be late for the first day of school. Poor Puppy obviously does not understand, watching mournfully as Bear dashes through the gate, sadly following Bear’s play with other animal friends at lunchtime, and missing his friend when he finally is released from school. Puppy tries to play all their favorite games by himself, but it’s just not any fun. Bear finds him that afternoon, sadly curled up under the oak, and the two clear up the misunderstanding and enjoy after-school afternoons filled with best-friend romps. And next fall, it will be Puppy’s turn to go to school. Bendall-Brunello’s Puppy and Bear have marvelously expressive faces, and their play certainly looks like fun in the watercolor-and–colored pencil illustrations. Bear is fully anthropomorphic, wearing clothes and walking on his hind feet, while Puppy is not, which makes for a relationship that might be difficult for readers to decode.
Fits the bill for readers whose own best buds have been lost to school. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: July 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5039-5096-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: May 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
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
Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind.
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)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780063329560
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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