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DIGGER DIGGER DIGGER

An uneven but lively book for kids who love construction vehicles.

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A little boy engages in imaginative sandbox play with his front-end loadertoy in Clarke’s picture book.

Young children’s fascination with construction vehicles, whether toys or the real thing, is an evergreen picture-book theme. This entry focuses on the sheer pleasure a child takes in playing with a favorite toy “digger.”Preschooler Elliot, in his backyard sandbox, speaks the phrase that’s repeated on each page of the rhyming text: “Digger Digger Digger / Big Scoop Dump!” In somewhat stilted verse, caused partly by occasionally reaching for rhymes with dump (stomp, rump, clump, dromedary’s hump), Elliot imagines himself inside the digger, excavating huge piles of sand and rock from a vast site: “Deeper in the dirt, / Steady he would dig, / Down, deep and pleasing / The hole grew ever big.” Visually, the full-color book has a pleasingly homemade look. (Clarke previously teamed up with illustrator Amendolagine on his first children’s book, Harriet’s Egg, in 2021.) Elliot’s exaggeratedly wide eyes are off-putting, but the border-to-border watercolor illustrations are vibrant, featuring fun details for children to spot, and the text is clear and readable. In the book’s genuinely sweet coda, Elliot, tired out from play, snuggles into his mother’s arms and is toted off to bed.

An uneven but lively book for kids who love construction vehicles.

Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-73730-172-1

Page Count: 34

Publisher: Self

Review Posted Online: Oct. 6, 2022

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BEDTIME FOR BATMAN

From the DC Super Heroes series , Vol. 1

This should send Dark Knight fans flying to the Batcave—or the bedroom.

Holy bedtime, Batman!

In a sleepy-looking neighborhood under a dusky cerulean sky, a young, brown-haired, white boy goes through the motions of getting ready for bed: he brushes his teeth, takes a bath, picks up his toys, and feeds his fish. In a parallel visual narrative, beckoned by the cat's-eye–yellow bat-signal, Batman keeps Gotham safe for another night by catching crooks, locking them away, and avenging those who have been wronged. Though the two characters are quite different, through a carefully flexible narrative, Dahl and Beavers weave a convincing tale of just how similar they might be. “It’s time to take care of business” describes the child’s trip to the potty and Batman’s dive down a manhole equally well, for instance. Beavers' art is visually striking and vibrantly hued, perfect for keeping young eyes glued to each page. Dahl's economical text is cadenced with a gentle lilt, just right for a bedtime read-aloud. Young fans of the caped crusader will delight in spying their favorite characters. In the already-overstuffed bedtime-book market, this is certainly a niche read, but it hits its mark well, delivering fun without darkness. A “bedtime checklist” at the end aptly includes “story time.”

This should send Dark Knight fans flying to the Batcave—or the bedroom. (Picture book. 3-8)

Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-62370-732-3

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Capstone Young Readers

Review Posted Online: May 13, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

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CINDERELLA

From the Once Upon a World series

A nice but not requisite purchase.

A retelling of the classic fairy tale in board-book format and with a Mexican setting.

Though simplified for a younger audience, the text still relates the well-known tale: mean-spirited stepmother, spoiled stepsisters, overworked Cinderella, fairy godmother, glass slipper, charming prince, and, of course, happily-ever-after. What gives this book its flavor is the artwork. Within its Mexican setting, the characters are olive-skinned and dark-haired. Cultural references abound, as when a messenger comes carrying a banner announcing a “FIESTA” in beautiful papel picado. Cinderella is the picture of beauty, with her hair up in ribbons and flowers and her typically Mexican many-layered white dress. The companion volume, Snow White, set in Japan and illustrated by Misa Saburi, follows the same format. The simplified text tells the story of the beautiful princess sent to the forest by her wicked stepmother to be “done away with,” the dwarves that take her in, and, eventually, the happily-ever-after ending. Here too, what gives the book its flavor is the artwork. The characters wear traditional clothing, and the dwarves’ house has the requisite shoji screens, tatami mats and cherry blossoms in the garden. The puzzling question is, why the board-book presentation? Though the text is simplified, it’s still beyond the board-book audience, and the illustrations deserve full-size books.

A nice but not requisite purchase. (Board book/fairy tale. 3-5)

Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-4814-7915-8

Page Count: 24

Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017

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