Inspiration to step—or dance—out of one’s comfort zone.
Doris, a dappled gray circus horse, has always loved performing in the ring, but she’s curious about life outside the big top.
The dancing horse goes out to discover new places and moves lithely through the night. “She couldn’t help wondering…wandering, springing, spinning out of step.” Is she happy in her new environment or scared or “dizzy with moonness”? As she continues her dance and doesn’t hear the usual applause at the end, she questions her situation. “Did I wander too far? Am I the only one out here?”And then, all of a sudden, there is a new friend in the moonlight, a small brown pony who loves Doris’ dancing and also enjoys prancing. Doris is no longer frightened and has a partner in exploration. As the sun comes up, Doris asks her new friend, “What else do you think is out there?” With its graceful multimedia illustrations, swirling images created with watercolors, pastels, and Photoshop, and short, lyrical text that sometimes dances on the page in agile arcs, this delightful book can be used as a read-aloud in schools or libraries or in more intimate family settings. Children will quickly recognize Doris’ ambivalent feelings as she escapes her comfortable circus life for new encounters in the woods, similar to their own growing-up experiences as they move outside into the larger world. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Inspiration to step—or dance—out of one’s comfort zone. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2023
ISBN: 9781250829382
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
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
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
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