A simpler alternative to Brian Patten and Nicola Bayley’s The Big Snuggle-Up (2011) for the youngest of listeners and...
William’s bed is a perfect haven from the winter snow; the forest denizens think so too.
William, a dark-haired white boy, gets readers in the winter mood with his rosy cheeks, old-fashioned nightcap and union suit, wooly socks, and striped scarf. His welcome to each refugee is just as warm. A tiny chipmunk is first, tapping at the window. “The two climb in and curl up tight. / They YAWN and say, / ‘Good night.’ / ‘Good night.’ ” It won’t take listeners long to chime in on this repeated refrain, the numbers increasing as a porcupine, a woodchuck, and a raccoon snuggle down in the bed as well. And then a note slides under the door: “Do you have room for just one more?” The animals are begrudging, quickly forgetting William’s generosity in the interest of space in the bed. But they just can’t turn the newcomer away in the cold and snow. The end finds a gracious William curled up in the chair beside a bed heaped with animals as dawn lightens the window: he’ll see them in the spring. Groenink’s illustrations deftly juxtapose the warm light of the cabin with the darkness outside, and his characters are expressive; few readers will be able to stifle their own yawns.
A simpler alternative to Brian Patten and Nicola Bayley’s The Big Snuggle-Up (2011) for the youngest of listeners and bed-sharers. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4847-2282-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
As ephemeral as a valentine.
Daywalt and Jeffers’ wandering crayons explore love.
Each double-page spread offers readers a vision of one of the anthropomorphic crayons on the left along with the statement “Love is [color].” The word love is represented by a small heart in the appropriate color. Opposite, childlike crayon drawings explain how that color represents love. So, readers learn, “love is green. / Because love is helpful.” The accompanying crayon drawing depicts two alligators, one holding a recycling bin and the other tossing a plastic cup into it, offering readers two ways of understanding green. Some statements are thought-provoking: “Love is white. / Because sometimes love is hard to see,” reaches beyond the immediate image of a cat’s yellow eyes, pink nose, and black mouth and whiskers, its white face and body indistinguishable from the paper it’s drawn on, to prompt real questions. “Love is brown. / Because sometimes love stinks,” on the other hand, depicted by a brown bear standing next to a brown, squiggly turd, may provoke giggles but is fundamentally a cheap laugh. Some of the color assignments have a distinctly arbitrary feel: Why is purple associated with the imagination and pink with silliness? Fans of The Day the Crayons Quit (2013) hoping for more clever, metaliterary fun will be disappointed by this rather syrupy read.
As ephemeral as a valentine. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Dec. 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-9268-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.
A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.
He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts. When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
