A decent offering in terms of music and illustrations, but the bizarre storyline and the complete lack of interaction sink...
A loosely knit doggy meets his demise when his parents lock him in the bathroom closet for the day.
Based on the 2010 traditional book of the same name (which was based on the original song written by Daunais in the 1950s), this story chronicles the plight of Snag, whose parents banish him to a closet while they go to the park to observe humans in cages. The abandoned pup cries and eventually falls asleep, only to be almost completely eaten by a million tiny mites that leave only his tail. When Snag’s parents return and find that he’s been devoured, his mother uses her knitting needles to reconstruct him (begging the question, “Is it really the same dog since it’s a new ball of yarn?”) The song is super peppy, which—when combined with the warped storyline—is reminiscent of an antidepressant commercial that plays cheery music while the narrator reads all of the medication’s ghastly side effects. Illustrations are strikingly colorful and display beautifully on the iPad screen, but none of them are the least bit interactive in nature. “Watch” mode functions like a video (with very minor animation in places); “read” is silent with manual page turns; "sing" is karaoke with pictures.
A decent offering in terms of music and illustrations, but the bizarre storyline and the complete lack of interaction sink the ship. (iPad storybook app. 3-6)Pub Date: Feb. 23, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: The Secret Mountain
Review Posted Online: April 7, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
Cookie-cutter predictability.
After all the daring escapes in the How To Catch… series, will the kids be able to catch Santa?
Oddly, previous installments saw the children trying (and failing) to catch an elf and a reindeer, but both are easily captured in this story. Santa, however, is slippery. Tempted but not fooled by poinsettias, a good book (attached to a slingshot armed with a teddy bear projectile), and, of course, milk and cookies, Santa foils every plan. The hero in a red suit has a job to do. Presents must be placed, and lists must be checked. He has no time for traps and foolery (except if you’re the elf, who falls for every one of them). Luckily, Santa helps the little rascal escape each time. Little is new here—the kids resort to similar snares found in previous works: netting, lures, and technological wonders such as the Santa Catcher 5000. Although the rhythm falters quite a bit (“How did we get out you ask? / It looked like we were done for. / Santa’s magic is very real, / and I cannot reveal more”), fans of the series may not mind. Santa and Christmas just might be enough to overcome the flaws. Santa and the elf are light-skinned, one of the children is brown-skinned, and the other presents as Asian. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Cookie-cutter predictability. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781728274270
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
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