It just goes to show that even with a unique take on a classic, you can still go wrong with the basics. (iPad storybook app....
There must be something about the (rights-free) story of the three homeowner pigs and that hungry wolf that appeals to iPad-app developers. There are so many versions of it—at least 20 by our count—for Apple's tablet that it's fair to say it's become a blank slate upon which to try different features on an easy, familiar story.
Developer So Ouat!'s contribution to the subgenre is that its version is cleanly packaged with Saturday-morning-cartoon–style pigs that live inside a virtual book. Users can choose an ages-5-and-under version or opt for a more complex one for children 6 and up. The "Show Me" tab triggers a feature that underlines words in the text; tapping those words brings up a drawing that defines the word. "Tell Me" reads the story, and an "Explain Me" tab offers the written definitions of tricky words. That's in the older version, which also includes a cursive version of the text, highlighted vowels and French and Spanish editions of the story. Despite the extensive frills, though, the text is sloppy and in need of some polish. "It was hard work and took a long time to build, but the house was even more beautiful and much stronger than the other two little pigs," reads one unfortunate, apostrophe-deprived sentence.
It just goes to show that even with a unique take on a classic, you can still go wrong with the basics. (iPad storybook app. 3-8)Pub Date: March 17, 2011
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Chocolapps
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property.
Since a reformed Grinch is hardly any fun, this follow-up Grinches him up once more.
Those seeking more of the same, prepare to receive precisely that. Christmas is coming (again!), and the Grinch can hardly wait. He’s been patient all year, and now he can finally show the Whos down in Who-ville how much he’s changed. When the Grinch learns of a tree-decorating contest, he figures that if he wins, it’ll prove he truly has the Christmas spirit. He throws himself into the task, but when it comes time to judge the trees, the Grinch is horrified to discover that he’s received only the second-place trophy. Can Cindy-Lou Who find the words to save the day? Replicating many of the original beats and wordplay of the original, this tale feels like less a sequel and more like a vaguely rewritten variation. Meanwhile, Ruiz’s art seeks to bridge the gap between the animated Chuck Jones version of the Grinch and the one depicted in the original book. This thankless task results in a strange uncanny valley between Seuss and Jones but does allow the artist a chance to colorize everything and lend some racial diversity to the Who population (Cindy-Lou is light-skinned). (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how many mediocre sequels you can squeeze out of Seussian property. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9780593563168
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
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