A sometimes-rambling but ultimately sweet animal tale.
A goose and a bear develop a close friendship in this debut picture book.
As a Canadian goose named Zoey plays in the pond, she is approached by a large black bear called Henry. They become fast friends, spending their days swimming in the pond and playing together. But as wintertime approaches, they realize they must go their separate ways for the season; Zoey will fly south and Henry will hibernate. They make plans to meet again in the spring. When Henry wakes to a verdant landscape after his long nap, he wonders whether his friendship with Zoey was a dream. At the pond, he is thrilled to see Zoey waiting for him. Though the moral here is charming, the book is wordy for this genre. Some verbose descriptions could have been omitted without effecting the plot. Wald’s use of adjectives and adverbs in the dialogue feels clunky and redundant, especially when the characters’ emotions are already evident via the illustrations (“Zoey paused, and then asked in a somewhat fearful voice”; “Feeling greatly relieved, Zoey exclaimed”). But Hannon’s (No Bears Allowed, 2019, etc.) whimsical, soft watercolor images are appealing, capturing pretty nature scenes in different seasons and offering friendly animal portrayals. And the engaging work emphasizes its worthy message with a note on the back explaining that the story “celebrates diversity” and shows “how differences and obstacles can be overcome with…a willingness to discover what we have in common with others.”
A sometimes-rambling but ultimately sweet animal tale.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-0-9857152-8-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Deeper Well Publishing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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