With her charming illustrations of a world populated entirely with rabbits, Kneen (Mouse Tail Moon, p. 1479, etc.) succeeds in elevating this rather pedestrian version of an old tale to a higher level. In her first work for children, Menendez weaves a story of a spider named Allie who takes up residence in a rabbit family’s comfortable home. The family is getting ready for Christmas, which the parents emphasize must be a simple celebration this year due to their finances. They trim their tree with homemade decorations and popcorn garlands and under the tree there is just one present for each parent and a Mommy-made doll for their little girl. The illustrations make the family’s Christmas preparations look cozy and pleasant, so the story’s only problem is that there aren’t quite enough gifts or quite enough decorations. To repay the kindness of the rabbit, Allie the resident spider adds sparkling spider-web garlands to the Christmas tree to surprise the family. These lacy spider-web decorations are reproduced with silver glitter on several pages and on the cover, adding a subtle shine. The rabbit family is duly impressed with their Christmas surprise, and on the final page, Allie the spider lays some eggs as she thinks about her next “art project.” The illustrations of the appealing rabbits are the work’s saving grace: the gentle brown rabbits with shining eyes and luminous pink ears invite readers into their world. For a better spin on the origin of tinsel, try Shirley Climo’s Cobweb Christmas (2001). (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-525-46860-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2002
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
Turkey’s in the “kind of trouble where it’s almost Thanksgiving...and you’re the main course.” Accordingly, Turkey tries on disguise after disguise, from horse to cow to pig to sheep, at each iteration being told that he looks nothing like the animal he’s trying to mimic (which is quite true, as Harper’s quirky watercolors make crystal clear). He desperately squeezes a red rubber glove onto his head to pass as a rooster, only to overhear the farmer suggest a poultry plan B when he’s unable to turn up the turkey. Turkey’s horrified expression as he stands among the peppers and tomatoes—in November? Chalk it up to artistic license—is priceless, but his surroundings give him an idea. Good fun, but it may lead to a vegetarian table or two. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7614-5529-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Marshall Cavendish
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2009
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