Explore elsewhere for a more satisfying read.
Leon the Raccoon wishes he could follow the snow geese north to the Arctic, prompting the first of many convenient plot turns in this translated picture book, originally published in French.
Mama Fox, mother of Leon’s friend Gaspard, is a pilot who happens to be heading to the Arctic to deliver supplies to a school. The opportune ride suddenly goes south when the plane must make an emergency landing. Rather than being frightened, however, the young protagonists are almost gleeful to be stranded in the Arctic. One by one, multiple Arctic animals (including a polar bear who is described as a “friendly giant”) handily assist the travelers through a series of unrealistically altruistic acts. When the crew builds an igloo in which to spend the night, they do so quickly and joyfully, giggling and exclaiming that constructing this most stereotypical of Arctic images is just like “building with giant blocks!” Several Arctic-specific vocabulary terms make an appearance, such as “tundra” and “Aurora Borealis,” but no explanations are presented to define or contextualize them. While the text lacks ingenuity, however, the illustrations soar. Cartoonlike images in saturated colors create stark contrasts between the animals and the blustery landscape in which they find themselves.
Explore elsewhere for a more satisfying read. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2017
ISBN: 978-2-7338-5045-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Auzou Publishing
Review Posted Online: Sept. 17, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Hee haw.
The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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