Exciting jungle high jinks starring one adorable little monkey and her protective Papa.
Clinging to her father’s back, Little Monkey travels safely across jungle treetops until one day she’s distracted and tumbles downward to the dark forest floor, where hungry predators lurk.
Rhythmic text describes how Little Monkey loves “to fly” from “vine to vine” and “branch to branch,” holding tightly to her Papa’s fur as he carries her “high and safe and quick in the bright, loud, green world.” When Papa warns Little Monkey to hide on a tree branch and stay still, she can’t resist reaching out for a butterfly and slips “down into a quiet dark.” Remembering Papa’s advice to hide, keep still, and hold tight, Little Monkey barely escapes a menacing ocelot by climbing up to a “coiled and curved” vine that turns out to be a sinister boa. Fortunately, Papa arrives in the nick of time. Bold pencil lines, atmospheric watercolor washes in bright greens, browns, and yellows, and double-page spreads of Little Monkey’s vertical descent and Papa’s horizontal flights perfectly convey the drama and energy of jungle life. Exaggerated close-ups of Little Monkey’s face capture her range of emotions, from exuberant joy as she rides on Papa’s back to paralyzing terror as she faces the unknown.
Exciting jungle high jinks starring one adorable little monkey and her protective Papa. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 8, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62979-100-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together.
A clueless duckling tries to make a new friend.
He is confused by this peculiar-looking duck, who has a long tail, doesn’t waddle and likes to be alone. No matter how explicitly the creature denies he is a duck and announces that he is a cat, the duckling refuses to acknowledge the facts. When this creature expresses complete lack of interest in playing puddle stomp, the little ducking goes off and plays on his own. But the cat is not without remorse for rejecting an offered friendship. Of course it all ends happily, with the two new friends enjoying each other’s company. Bramsen employs brief sentences and the simplest of rhymes to tell this slight tale. The two heroes are meticulously drawn with endearing, expressive faces and body language, and their feathers and fur appear textured and touchable. Even the detailed tree bark and grass seem three-dimensional. There are single- and double-page spreads, panels surrounded by white space and circular and oval frames, all in a variety of eye-pleasing juxtapositions. While the initial appeal is solidly visual, young readers will get the gentle message that friendship is not something to take for granted but is to be embraced with open arms—or paws and webbed feet.
A sweet, tender and charming experience to read aloud or together. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-375-86990-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Nov. 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2012
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