More likely to create anxiety than to cultivate empathy or sympathy.
Forty-six pages into Dani’s happy, second-to-last day at school, her teacher takes her out to the hallway, newly informed that “Your father has been run over….He was biking to work.”
As with the previous two books about Dani, My Happy Life (2013) and My Heart Is Laughing (2014), this book is unerringly honest about the experiences and feelings of both children and adults. However, its shocking, melodramatic plot pushes the envelope. Readers learn that Dani is motherless, but otherwise all is initially light humor, as in classmates’ insertion of thumbtacks into the soles of their shoes for tap dancing. Dani is preparing finishing touches on her masterpiece, a book about happiness, when the bad news comes. The emotions that accompany a child in shock are realistic, and Dani’s grandparents and her beloved cousin, Sven, play a role in helping her cope. Although tragedies occur daily in real life, it’s asking a lot of chapter-book readers to master emotions along with decoding skills by reading such sentences as, “And so it is that Dani, on the second-to-last day of school, goes to the hospital where her father lies sleeping so deeply that he might never wake up again.” What is perhaps intended as comic relief feels ghoulish, as in a classmate’s note: “I hope your father gets better so you don’t have to go to an orphanage!” The black-and-white illustrations are sweetly appealing.
More likely to create anxiety than to cultivate empathy or sympathy. (Fiction. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-9272-7190-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Gecko Press
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
© Copyright 2024 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.
