Delightfully on-brand. Kids will book it to the shelves for this one.
The Unlimited Squirrels return for a metafictive romp—hooray!
Carrying a copy of the book (yes, this book), one squirrel asks “Who is the MYSTERY READER?” The others respond, one after another: “Let’s. Read. And. Find out!” So begins this sequel to I Lost My Tooth! (2018), a brilliant, 96-page laugh track composed of four stories and three “acorn-y” jokes. In the first story, the squirrels struggle to decode the letters of a stop sign. Thankfully, the heroic Mystery Reader arrives on the scene—complete with mask and underpants—to help them sound out their letters: “Ssssttt… / …OP!” The second story includes a brief history of writing systems (and a web address for further info); the third divulges “Mo Squirrel’s” own writing process. Though narratively all over the place (in a good way), this takes the self-referential torch from We Are in a Book! (2010) and highlights the next step up in reading development. Willems’ high-interest presentation and formula create a familiar, entertaining format that combines fact, fiction, and plenty of squirrels. The text complexity is similar to that found in the Elephant and Piggie books, but there are more color-coded dialogue bubbles per page. Willems also employs “emote-acorns” to highlight characters’ emotions. Readers may never find out who the Mystery Reader is, but, in the process of investigating, they just might sound out their own reading superpowers!
Delightfully on-brand. Kids will book it to the shelves for this one. (Early reader. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-04686-2
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor
Having surveyed worms, spiders, flies, and head lice, Gravel continues her Disgusting Critters series with a quick hop through toad fact and fancy.
The facts are briefly presented in a hand-lettered–style typeface frequently interrupted by visually emphatic interjections (“TOXIN,” “PREY,” “EWWW!”). These are, as usual, paired to simply drawn cartoons with comments and punch lines in dialogue balloons. After casting glances at the common South American ancestor of frogs and toads, and at such exotic species as the Emei mustache toad (“Hey ladies!”), Gravel focuses on the common toad, Bufo bufo. Using feminine pronouns throughout, she describes diet and egg-laying, defense mechanisms, “warts,” development from tadpole to adult, and of course how toads shed and eat their skins. Noting that global warming and habitat destruction have rendered some species endangered or extinct, she closes with a plea and, harking back to those South American origins, an image of an outsized toad, arm in arm with a dark-skinned lad (in a track suit), waving goodbye: “Hasta la vista!”
A light dose of natural history, with occasional “EWWW!” for flavor . (Informational picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-77049-667-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2016
An immersive, charming read and convincing proof again that even small bodies can house stout hearts.
Can knightly deeds bring together a feathered odd couple who are on opposite daily schedules?
Having won over a dragon (and millions of fans) in the Caldecott Honor–winning Knight Owl (2022), the fierce yet impossibly cute nocturnal, armor-clad owlet faces a new challenge—sleep deprivation—in the wake of taking on Early Bird, a trainee who rises with the sun and chatters interminably: “I made pancakes! Do you like pancakes? I love pancakes! Where’s the syrup?” It’s enough to test the patience of even the knightliest of owls, and eventually Knight Owl explodes in anger. But although Early Bird is even smaller than her mentor, she turns out to be just as determined to achieve knighthood. After he tells her to leave, she acquits herself so nobly in a climactic encounter with a pack of wolves that she earns a place at the castle. Denise proves a dab hand at depicting genuinely slinky, scary wolves as well as slipping cheerfully anachronistic newspapers and other sight gags into his realistically wrought medieval settings to underscore the tale’s tongue-in-cheek tone. Better yet, a final view of the doughty duo sitting down together to a lavish pancake breakfast/dinner at dusk ends the episode in a sweet rush of syrup and bonhomie.
An immersive, charming read and convincing proof again that even small bodies can house stout hearts. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9780316564526
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2025
© 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.
