Harris’s tale offers a swashbuckling adventure with a twist. Good boy Tom is lured to the buccaneer life by a collection of little girl pirates who arrive to steal away the façade of his house one evening—think stealth attacks and Trojan Horse tactics. He joins the courageous cuties as they set out to pilfer the treasure of the dastardly Captain Patch. Harris’s tale of derring-do hits just the right note for pint-sized pirates; there’s lots of suspense but very little fearsome action, even when the tots seize the bounty from the grown-up, yet cowardly band of Patch’s men. Harris imbues the narrative with a jaunty rhythm that will hold readers’ attention for the duration of the tale. Allwright’s collage-style illustrations are awash in the hues of the night, where midnight blue skies give way to lavender tints of moonlit sands. Her crew of feminine pirates is too cute to be intimidating, and Patch’s men are comical caricatures of bumbling buffoons, too silly to fear. Pirate fans of both sexes will enjoy this rollicking, high-seas caper. (Picture book. 3-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-439-79959-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2006
BOOK REVIEW
The insatiable elder is still ingesting the unpalatable, to kids’ everlasting amusement.
Swallowing a rainbow sets off a series of events that lead to a surprising conclusion.
The title character begins by consuming a cloud—and who hasn’t wished to do that? The cloud is meant to carry the rainbow, but why did she swallow it? The somewhat weak answer: “I don’t know why she swallowed a rainbow. Would you like to know?” The cloud is followed by glitter (kids, don’t try this at home!), then by a cone to catch the glitter, a pole to lift the cone, ribbon to tie the cone, and a horse (“silly, of course”). Then suddenly the lady starts to run, and the items painlessly reappear. The cone becomes a unicorn’s horn, and the unicorn becomes part of a small carousel with golden, beribboned poles and two more matching unicorns, topped with the glitter-sprinkled cloud and the rainbow arching over all. The dame and a half-dozen children stand watching in breathless excitement. As per the astoundingly successful formula, the repetitive text is irresistible and the zany art is more than half the fun. The dame’s head swells to accommodate a mouth capable of the necessary swallowing feats, and her small black dog—whose mouth stretches from ear to nose—is on hand to celebrate key moments. The old lady has pink skin and dark hair, and the children have a range of skin tones.
The insatiable elder is still ingesting the unpalatable, to kids’ everlasting amusement. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781546138525
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Watching unlikely friends finally be as “happy as two someones can be” feels like being enveloped in your very own hug.
What to do when you’re a prickly animal hankering for a hug? Why, find another misfit animal also searching for an embrace!
Sweet but “tricky to hug” little Hedgehog is down in the dumps. Wandering the forest, Hedgehog begs different animals for hugs, but each rejects them. Readers will giggle at their panicked excuses—an evasive squirrel must suddenly count its three measly acorns; a magpie begins a drawn-out song—but will also be indignant on poor hedgehog’s behalf. Hedgehog has the appealingly pink-cheeked softness typical of Dunbar’s art, and the gentle watercolors are nonthreatening, though she also captures the animals’ genuine concern about being poked. A wise owl counsels the dejected hedgehog that while the prickles may frighten some, “there’s someone for everyone.” That’s when Hedgehog spots a similarly lonely tortoise, rejected due to its “very hard” shell but perfectly matched for a spiky new friend. They race toward each other until the glorious meeting, marked with swoony peach swirls and overjoyed grins. At this point, readers flip the book to hear the same gloomy tale from the tortoise’s perspective until it again culminates in that joyous hug, a book turn that’s made a pleasure with thick creamy paper and solid binding.
Watching unlikely friends finally be as “happy as two someones can be” feels like being enveloped in your very own hug. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-571-34875-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
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