A charming, amusing, and sweet canine tale about difference and friendship.
A dog who marches to his own drummer tries conforming in this debut picture book.
All the dogs of Harmony Street act in a normal and proper way except for one: Charley. In defiance of canine custom, Charley sticks his rear out the car window rather than his head; he runs in triangles, not circles; and instead of playing catch in the park, he heads home to nap—“with CATS!” Charley’s friends wonder why he can’t act like the rest of them. But Charley just replies, “You say forwards, I say backwards. It’s not right or wrong, wrong nor right. We are just different, you see. And I’m just happy being me.” But Charley’s friends walk away (CATS!), and he decides that maybe he should try acting like other dogs. When he does, though, things work out badly. But finally, his friends return: “As long as you’re happy, what else is there?” To prove it, they all walk Charley home—backward. Rogers’ book effectively reads as a metaphor for autism or any condition that sets kids apart from the majority. Charley has good reasons for doing things the way he does, and the author wisely doesn’t demand that he ultimately conform or reveal some acceptance-earning supertalent. The slightly exaggerated realism of the illustrations by Boyd (Calling the Water Drum, 2016, etc.) does a superb job of showing the dogs’ personalities while adding much liveliness and humor.
A charming, amusing, and sweet canine tale about difference and friendship.Pub Date: April 17, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-942586-24-1
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Little Creek Press
Review Posted Online: Oct. 24, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The greeting-card art and jokey rhymes work for the baby-shower market but not for the youngest readers.
Animal parents declare their love for their offspring through rhymed puns and sentimental art.
The title sets the scene for what’s to come: The owl asks the owlet as they fly together, “WHOO loves you?”; the kangaroo and joey make each other “very HOPPY”; and the lioness and cub are a “PURRRFECT pair.” Most of the puns are both unimaginative and groanworthy, and they are likely to go over the heads of toddlers, who are not know for their wordplay abilities. The text is set in abcb quatrains split over two double-page spreads. On each spread, one couplet appears on the verso within a lightly decorated border on pastel pages. On the recto, a full-bleed portrait of the animal and baby appears in softly colored and cozy images. Hearts are prominent on every page, floating between the parent and baby as if it is necessary to show the love between each pair. Although these critters are depicted in mistily conceived natural habitats and are unclothed, they are human stand-ins through and through.
The greeting-card art and jokey rhymes work for the baby-shower market but not for the youngest readers. (Board book. 6 mos-2)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7282-1374-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: June 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2020
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BOOK REVIEW
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