Like Gilbert, this soars.
A penguin longs to fly.
A half-hatched penguin peers out from his cracked-open egg on the title page, sharing his first view of the world with readers on the following double-page spread. The shell’s hole faces upward, so Gilbert sees only sky. “The moon glowed. The stars sparkled. The birds wheeled.” Gilbert’s enamored. He needs to fly. But…he’s a penguin. “[T]he storm petrels, the shearwaters, and the wandering albatross” soar “Up Up Up,” those three words marching upward on the page. Gilbert, in contrast, flaps, waddles, slips, spins, and tumbles. The harder he tries, the more he falls, and the more renditions of him appear, emphasizing his failure—even 19 at once. He looks like he’s dancing across the spread, but dancing isn’t his goal. Family is unhelpful: “Give it up, Gilbert,” and, “You’re a penguin, not a goose,” Uncle Crabstack and Aunt Anchovy say quellingly. Gilbert is undeterred. Trudging up a rocky, snowy height, he watches the albatross soar away “over the sparkling ocean.” He jumps to follow—and inadvertently finds his heart’s desire: the penguin version of flying, which is underwater and, it turns out, equally glorious. With masterful composition and scale changes, Bentley creates a white and gently patterned icy world where flying birds wing in elegance both near and far. He renders Gilbert’s fluffiness brilliantly in watercolor and pencil—Gilbert appears soft, not wet—while giving adult penguins sleek edges and flying birds a fine delicacy.
Like Gilbert, this soars. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5520-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2019
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
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
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