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A BEAN, A STALK AND A BOY NAMED JACK

Name: A BEAN, A STALK AND A BOY NAMED JACK
Author: William Joyce
ISBN: 978-1-4424-7349-2

by William Joyce ; illustrated by William Joyce ; Kenny Callicutt ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 7, 2014

Engrossing illustrations and quirky humor, hitched to Joyce’s renown, will earn this its audience.

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Moonbot Studios collaborators Joyce and Callicutt royally fracture the familiar folk tale in this high-concept romp.

A cheeky narration, played for laughs, introduces a “smallish kid with the smallish name of Jack” in a drought-stricken kingdom. When the king, dirty as anyone, demands his subjects cry enough tears to wash his “stinky” pinky toe, the embarrassed young princess implores the “local old wizard guy” to “PAH-LEEZE, do something magical.” The wizard reads, thinks, draws, does some math and magic—and zaps a bean (who’s then able to verbalize its own planting instructions) off to Jack. The resultant vine’s so thick it dominates a double-page spread. Jack, climbing with Bean (now a pod—no botany lesson here), encounters a “smallish giant kid named Don” taking a leisurely bath. When bath and visit end, Jack returns via tub drain. Joyce and Callicutt’s accomplished multimedia visuals show ensuing waterfalls (which render the king’s pinky “unstinky”) and rainfall, lubricating the kingdom once more. The pictures are both epic (see the tub’s prodigious plumbing) and infused with minutiae: A talismanic redheaded bird accompanies Jack throughout. Bean’s word balloons are leaf-shaped; Jack’s, like his shepherd’s staff. In some sly concluding business, Jack invites the princess (“you can call me Jill”) up the hill to fetch water for thirsty Bean. “The End…sorta.”

Engrossing illustrations and quirky humor, hitched to Joyce’s renown, will earn this its audience. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-4424-7349-2

Page Count: 56

Publisher: Atheneum

Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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ROCKET PUPPIES
by William Joyce ; illustrated by William Joyce

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OLLIE'S ODYSSEY
by William Joyce ; illustrated by William Joyce

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JACK FROST
by William Joyce ; illustrated by William Joyce & Andrew Theophilopoulos

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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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)