It’s safe to say that Peepers curtsies to a different drummer at the Royal Academy for Perfect Princesses. She fails to conform to the dainty interests the other girls enjoy. The students follow social mores to a T, but Peepers crashes the tea party on her skateboard and dangles upside down to strengthen her posture. When the students plan a pet show, Peepers hopes to find a suitable selection; unfortunately, her potential entries exude too much slime or bear too many appendages to be popular choices. As in her first, self-titled adventure (2008), the absence of Peepers’ glasses leads to disastrous results. She falls upon a fantastic creature she mistakenly identifies as a dirty, fire-breathing, winged unicorn, which she brings us her entry in the competition. Peepers’ quirks reveal a sympathetic character; her internal musings and wistful dialogue demonstrate her longing for acceptance. Buttressed by details (“watching dragonflies buzz always helped her think”), Peepers’ personality comes through loud and clear. The emphasis here is on social differences instead of physical ones; the royal waifs' uniformly slim stature does little to promote acceptance of varied body images. Digital painting and graphite merge with bold collage images to glossy effect, and elongated limbs provide a whimsical nuance. It's a light regal romp, forgoing the need for any extra pomp or circumstance. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-7614-5815-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: Feb. 10, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2011
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
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers.
Echoing the meter of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” Ward uses catchy original rhymes to describe the variety of nests birds create.
Each sweet stanza is complemented by a factual, engaging description of the nesting habits of each bird. Some of the notes are intriguing, such as the fact that the hummingbird uses flexible spider web to construct its cup-shaped nest so the nest will stretch as the chicks grow. An especially endearing nesting behavior is that of the emperor penguin, who, with unbelievable patience, incubates the egg between his tummy and his feet for up to 60 days. The author clearly feels a mission to impart her extensive knowledge of birds and bird behavior to the very young, and she’s found an appealing and attractive way to accomplish this. The simple rhymes on the left page of each spread, written from the young bird’s perspective, will appeal to younger children, and the notes on the right-hand page of each spread provide more complex factual information that will help parents answer further questions and satisfy the curiosity of older children. Jenkins’ accomplished collage illustrations of common bird species—woodpecker, hummingbird, cowbird, emperor penguin, eagle, owl, wren—as well as exotics, such as flamingoes and hornbills, are characteristically naturalistic and accurate in detail.
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers. (author’s note, further resources) (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-2116-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
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