A solid selection for those youngsters plagued by drama llamas—you know who you are!
A young boy realizes that articulating his fears just might put them in their place.
Poor Alex Allen is beset by anxiety. He frets about not knowing the right answer in class, having two left feet when he’s dancing, and dealing with disagreements with his sister. As his worries mount, they morph into a larger-than-life purple drama llama that follows Alex everywhere. The animal even disturbs his rest, taking his place in bed and leaving Alex sleeping on the floor. Alex makes several attempts to get rid of the pesky beast, but all fail, and the llama takes over his life, eventually becoming “almost bigger than a bus!” Wise teacher Ms. Myrtle then takes pity on the youngster and suggests that talking about his fears might put the llama in its place. Confiding in Ms. Myrtle helps, and while the llama doesn’t disappear altogether, it does end up becoming small enough to handle—an effective metaphor for coping with anxiety. The rhyming, descriptive text, reassuring message, and helpful coping strategies make this a good read-aloud choice. Set against plentiful white space, the colorful, loose-lined Photoshop illustrations offer humorous and relatable depictions of Alex’s worried response to the ever-growing llama. Alex is brown-skinned, Ms. Myrtle is light-skinned, and his class is diverse. Backmatter includes tips for taming a drama llama.
A solid selection for those youngsters plagued by drama llamas—you know who you are! (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2024
ISBN: 9781728283135
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
Totes adorbs.
A cuddly, squishy pug’s puggy-wuggy diary.
Equipped with both #pugunicorn and #pughotdog outfits, pug Baron von Bubbles (aka Bub) is the kind of dog that always dresses to impress. Bub also makes lots of memorable faces, such as the “Hey, you’re not the boss of me!” expression aimed at Duchess, the snooty pink house cat. Some of Bub’s favorite things include skateboarding, a favorite teddy, and eating peanut butter. Bub also loves Bella, who adopted Bub from a fair—it was “love at first sniff.” Together, Bub and Bella do a lot of arts and crafts. Their latest project: entering Bella’s school’s inventor challenge by making a super-duper awesome rocket. But, when the pesky neighborhood squirrel, Nutz, makes off with Bub’s bear, Bub accidentally ruins their project. How will they win the contest? More importantly, how will Bella ever forgive him? May’s cutesy, full-color cartoon art sets the tone for this pug-tastic romp for the new-to–chapter-books crowd. Emojilike faces accentuate Bub’s already expressive character design. Bub’s infectious first-person narration pushes the silly factor off the charts. In addition to creating the look and feel of a diary, the lined paper helps readers follow the eight-chapter story. Most pages have fewer than five sentences, often broken into smaller sections. Additional text appears in color-coded speech bubbles. Bella presents white.
Totes adorbs. (Fiction. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-53003-2
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
A strong, accessible diary story for readers seeking an adorable animal tale.
Bub the anxious pug tackles snow days and new neighbors in his second outing.
Bub, acclaimed by some as “the cutest pug on the planet,” at first shares the enthusiasm owner Bella expresses about snow days even though he doesn’t know what they are. Then Duchess the cat (mildly antagonistic, in typical feline fashion) rains on Bub’s parade by pointing out that snow is water—and Bub’s no fan of rain or baths. After a comedic and disastrous first attempt, Bub learns how to properly dress for snow and enjoy it. The outdoor fun’s cut short by mysterious noises coming from the new neighbor, which frighten Bella into thinking there’s a monster. Bub puts on a Sherlock Holmes get-up to investigate but becomes afraid himself of the new neighbor’s large dog. Finally, Bella meets Jack, who’s been working on a tree fort, and his dog, Luna, who is enthusiastically friendly. The story ends on a positive note, as they all happily work together on the fort. The full-color cartoon illustrations, especially of Bub, are adorably expressive and certain to please the age group. The generous font and format—short, diary-entry paragraphs and speech-bubble conversations—create a quick pace. Bub’s stylized emoji bubbles return and are most hilarious when used to express his nervous flatulence. Bella and Jack both present white.
A strong, accessible diary story for readers seeking an adorable animal tale. (Fantasy. 5-7)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-53006-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
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