This Thomas wannabe is eminently skippable.
Braun introduces another pair of machine pals in his latest, following Toot and Pop (2012) and Digger and Tom (2013).
Chug is a hardworking little engine who uses his two cars and his crane to collect and deliver freight. He may not be fast, but he is careful and dependable. Whoosh is a passenger train who sometimes pokes fun at Chug, calling him a slowpoke. Readers follow Chug on his rounds as he goes “into the forest… / past the lake… / and through the tunnel.” He comes to a stop at a junction, where the signal box tells him there’s danger ahead. While the patient engine waits and waits for the light to turn green, the impetuous Whoosh flies by. When a rock slide and a hole in the bridge trap the larger engine, it’s Chug who comes to the rescue, passing the still-red light to methodically remove the rocks and free Whoosh, who promises to pay better attention. Whoosh thanks Chug for being such a good pal, but since their friendship was not established at the beginning, their bond seems a little shallow—the relationship seems mostly to consist of Whoosh’s harping on Chug’s slowness, both before and after the rescue. Braun’s digital illustrations are bright, bold and clean; they combine with the ever-popular subject of trains to grab readers’ attention, but the story within won’t hold it.
This Thomas wannabe is eminently skippable. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-06-207754-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2014
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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