A remarkable story of compassion and cooperation.
In this work inspired by a true story from the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, people sacrifice comfort to protect a family of birds.
In Pothakudi, many villagers lack electricity at home, relying on streetlights after dark. So, when a pair of vannathikuruvis, or magpie-robins, build their nest in the streetlight switchboard box, the residents face a dilemma. They need the lights—Leela Maami’s granddaughter is teaching her to read, Deepa’s father plays cards at night—but Karuppu Raja, who’s in charge of the streetlights, wants to protect “Mr. and Mrs. VK.” He texts bird photos to his circle, and people gather. Clamoring children name the birds they know only from photos or stories, persuading the disgruntled grown-ups. When Mrs. VK lays “a tiny turquoise oval with chocolate flecks. Bright as the summer sky. Fresh as daybreak,” the villagers, united by this marvel, creatively protect the birds and keep one another safe at night. French-Indian poet Naïr’s award winner, originally published in French in 2022, is both evocatively grounded in a well-rendered cultural setting and universally relevant in its exploration of humans’ impact on nature. The sophisticated text evokes the timeless feeling of a fairy tale. Jolivet’s striking art resembles block prints—heavy black lines and exuberant colors convey emotion, accentuate the beauty of birds and foliage, and immerse readers in Pothakudi’s inky nights and sun-drenched days.
A remarkable story of compassion and cooperation. (background notes, glossary) (Picture book. 7-11)Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9781849769150
Page Count: 52
Publisher: Tate Publishing
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2025
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face.
Four misunderstood villains endeavor to turn over a new leaf…or a new rap sheet in Blabey's frenzied romp.
As readers open the first page of this early chapter book, Mr. Wolf is right there to greet them, bemoaning his reputation. "Just because I've got BIG POINTY TEETH and RAZOR-SHARP CLAWS and I occasionally like to dress up like an OLD LADY, that doesn't mean… / … I'm a BAD GUY." To prove this very fact, Mr. Wolf enlists three equally slandered friends into the Good Guys Club: Mr. Snake (aka the Chicken Swallower), Mr. Piranha (aka the Butt Biter), and Mr. Shark (aka Jaws). After some convincing from Mr. Wolf, the foursome sets off determined to un-smirch their names (and reluctantly curbing their appetites). Although these predators find that not everyone is ready to be at the receiving end of their helpful efforts, they use all their Bad Guy know-how to manage a few hilarious good deeds. Blabey has hit the proverbial nail on the head, kissed it full on the mouth, and handed it a stick of Acme dynamite. With illustrations that startle in their manic comedy and deadpan direct address and with a narrative that follows four endearingly sardonic characters trying to push past (sometimes successfully) their fear-causing natures, this book instantly joins the classic ranks of Captain Underpants and The Stinky Cheese Man.
We challenge anyone to read this and keep a straight face. (Fiction. 7-11)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-91240-2
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Thought-provoking and charming.
A sophisticated robot—with the capacity to use senses of sight, hearing, and smell—is washed to shore on an island, the only robot survivor of a cargo of 500.
When otters play with her protective packaging, the robot is accidently activated. Roz, though without emotions, is intelligent and versatile. She can observe and learn in service of both her survival and her principle function: to help. Brown links these basic functions to the kind of evolution Roz undergoes as she figures out how to stay dry and intact in her wild environment—not easy, with pine cones and poop dropping from above, stormy weather, and a family of cranky bears. She learns to understand and eventually speak the language of the wild creatures (each species with its different “accent”). An accident leaves her the sole protector of a baby goose, and Roz must ask other creatures for help to shelter and feed the gosling. Roz’s growing connection with her environment is sweetly funny, reminiscent of Randall Jarrell’s The Animal Family. At every moment Roz’s actions seem plausible and logical yet surprisingly full of something like feeling. Robot hunters with guns figure into the climax of the story as the outside world intrudes. While the end to Roz’s benign and wild life is startling and violent, Brown leaves Roz and her companions—and readers—with hope.
Thought-provoking and charming. (Science fiction/fantasy. 7-11)Pub Date: April 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-316-38199-4
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
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