A startlingly informative alternative to the run-of-the-mill potty book. (Picture book. 3-7)
The call of nature prods a young three-toed sloth to go it alone.
Young Kyle, Thornhill informs readers, does everything at such a glacial pace that he needs to “go” only once a week. When that once-a-week urge rolls around, he is taken aback when his mother announces he can make the long trip from the rain forest canopy to the ground to do his duty all by himself. Kyle isn’t so sure, but he sets out, taking heart along the way from the encouragement of neighbors at various levels: a red-spectacled parrot, a whipsnake, a tiger-legged monkey tree frog, and a leafcutter ant. Sharp-eyed readers will notice Kyle’s mother, hidden behind leaves but keeping watch all the way down, in addition to the various named animals. Barron’s cut-paper collages feature crisp edges and textured, painted surfaces that hint at algae-covered sloth fur. Her palette for the foliage is dominated by light greens and blues, which doesn’t evoke the deep, emerald greens typically associated with the rain forest but does pick up Kyle’s odd, blue eyes. Several double-page spreads are oriented vertically, forcing readers to turn the book 90 degrees and emphasizing the great height from which Kyle descends. Two concluding notes provide further information on the alimentary system of the three-toed sloth and natural camouflage; Thornhill’s sources appear on the final page.
A startlingly informative alternative to the run-of-the-mill potty book. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-77147-075-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way.
All the typical worries and excuses kids have about school are filtered through Willems’ hysterical, bus-loving Pigeon.
Told mostly in speech balloons, the bird’s monologue will have kids (and their caregivers) in stitches at Pigeon’s excuses. From already knowing everything (except whatever question readers choose to provide in response to “Go ahead—ask me a question. / Any question!”) to fearing learning too much (“My head might pop off”), Pigeon’s imagination has run wild. Readers familiar with Pigeon will recognize the muted, matte backgrounds that show off the bird’s shenanigans so well. As in previous outings, Willems varies the size of the pigeon on the page to help communicate emotion, the bird teeny small on the double-page spread that illustrates the confession that “I’m… / scared.” And Pigeon’s eight-box rant about all the perils of school (“The unknown stresses me out, dude”) is marvelously followed by the realization (complete with lightbulb thought bubble) that school is the place for students to practice, with experts, all those skills they don’t yet have. But it is the ending that is so Willems, so Pigeon, and so perfect. Pigeon’s last question is “Well, HOW am I supposed to get there, anyway!?!” Readers will readily guess both the answer and Pigeon’s reaction.
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-04645-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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