Fear of the unknown, neighborliness, and an attentive dog are just the start of conversational possibilities.
This French Canadian import features a single father and son who undertake an ambitious project.
The two brown rabbits live with their dog on a farm in a village surrounded by evergreen forest: A wordless spread captures its density with distinct trunks visible at the silhouetted composition’s base, spires stretching to the tops of the pages, and the merest hints of light in the center. With young Arthur narrating, a minimalist text builds suspense: “People say that wolves live in the forest, and ogres, and giant badgers. No one ever goes in there!” His father, however, wants to know what’s on the other side, and a “magnificent” idea forms. Baking mounds of bread, he arouses curiosity in the villagers (and readers). Neighbors follow their noses and soon find themselves exchanging large stones for loaves; the construction of a tall tower will provide a vista. Selected details—clothing, wheat, the wagon—are rendered in red, yellow, and turquoise, contrasting with the setting’s earth tones and cream-colored pages. This orderly world turns into a scene out of a Brueghel painting when the villagers celebrate with games after a storm delays—but does not derail—the dream. The premise is not new, but the family structure, the cooperative community, and the quality of the precisely inked and colored art combine for a riveting read.
Fear of the unknown, neighborliness, and an attentive dog are just the start of conversational possibilities. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 30, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77164-796-0
Page Count: 72
Publisher: Greystone Kids
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories.
Kids know vegetables can be scary, but rarely are edible roots out to get someone. In this whimsical mock-horror tale, carrots nearly frighten the whiskers off Jasper Rabbit, an interloper at Crackenhopper Field.
Jasper loves carrots, especially those “free for the taking.” He pulls some in the morning, yanks out a few in the afternoon, and comes again at night to rip out more. Reynolds builds delicious suspense with succinct language that allows understatements to be fully exploited in Brown’s hilarious illustrations. The cartoon pictures, executed in pencil and then digitally colored, are in various shades of gray and serve as a perfectly gloomy backdrop for the vegetables’ eerie orange on each page. “Jasper couldn’t get enough carrots … / … until they started following him.” The plot intensifies as Jasper not only begins to hear the veggies nearby, but also begins to see them everywhere. Initially, young readers will wonder if this is all a product of Jasper’s imagination. Was it a few snarling carrots or just some bathing items peeking out from behind the shower curtain? The ending truly satisfies both readers and the book’s characters alike. And a lesson on greed goes down like honey instead of a forkful of spinach.
Serve this superbly designed title to all who relish slightly scary stories. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-4424-0297-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2012
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