A little parental TLC finally calms the storm, as it usually does.
A young child presents a catalogue of timeless irritations and injustices in a 1976 outing with art and text lightly massaged and reformatted for newly independent readers.
From “When I do something nice and no one cares…” or “When you get mad at ME and I didn’t do it…” to “When I NEED you and you make me WAIT…” Nina’s complaints range from actual injustice to self-absorbed whining and so have near-universal applicability. Each general grievance is paired to a specific incident detailed in comic-book–style panels on the facing page, such as a painting that distracted parents don’t praise properly, a promise of ice cream that doesn’t pan out, a playmate who abruptly runs off with someone else or clothing that just won’t go on the right way. Fresh and buoyant despite the old-style television or occasional other period detail, Knight’s art places Nina—short haired, dressed in overalls and looking androgynous, in contrast to the girlier figure that Christine Davenier made of her in a 2002 edition (published as That Makes Me Mad)—between siblings in a comfortably domestic setting. He captures her feelings in a broad range of wonderfully expressive body language ranging from hunched-shoulder, irritated frowns to melodramatic sprawls. A posthumous publication for Kroll; Knight is still going strong and working on an autobiography.
A little parental TLC finally calms the storm, as it usually does. (Graphic early reader. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-935179-10-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: TOON/Candlewick
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2011
Ghostly fun for the gentlest of readers.
Newly arrived with his parents in seemingly quiet Kersville, an anxious young Latine boy discovers that his new house isn’t quite as normal and boring as he’d hoped.
This graphic reboot of the opener to a proliferating series of early chapter books dispenses with most of the explication but sticks closely to the original’s plotline and dialogue. Hardly has Andres Miedoso—who shares a name with the tale’s author—had time to unpack before a flurry of weird noises and events sends him hurrying over to consult with his grinning, brown-skinned new neighbor, who earlier handed him a business card provocatively labeled “Desmond Cole, Ghost Patrol.” Yes, there’s a ghost in Andres’ house—a jagged, seething cloud of ectoplasm that makes a terrifying first impression…but then gleefully chows down on some unfortunate lasagna and, after paying the gastric price, admits to being a sad, lonely specter searching for a permanent home. By the end, all three have bonded, Andres has a card of his own, and the stage is set for further supernatural exploits. The illustrations are closely based on those in the book’s antecedent, with the addition of bright colors that nicely show off Desmond’s big personality—and the massive green sliming Andres gets when the ghost upchucks all over him. The chills are, if anything, even lighter than the original’s, and the fresh format may draw some new fans.
Ghostly fun for the gentlest of readers. (Graphic ghost fantasy. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 27, 2026
ISBN: 9798347100811
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
The dream phantasms of a high-spirited narrator intersect, even crowd, reality, but the stream-of-consciousness text makes for a rambling, radically personal tale. Playful images of a stuffed lion, trampoline, purple shoes, and a cat named Pine-Cone take hold in a young girl’s imagination, despite her “old” mother who makes her go to bed when she’d rather “stay up early” and a big sister with a cranky disposition. At home, she likes counting flea bites and pretending to be a worm, but is afraid of the dark and going to Grade One. The second half of the book takes off in a separate first-day-of school direction. Wild dreams precede the big day, which includes bullies on the playground and instant friend Chelsea. The childlike articulations of the text are endearing, but not quite of universal interest, and don’t add up to a compelling story; children may more readily warm to Gay’s illustrations, which include a dreamlike flying cat, a menacing hot dog, and an uproarious stuffed toy looming over everyday domestic scenes. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Feb. 15, 1999
ISBN: 1-55143-107-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1999
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