by Kate Messner ; illustrated by MacKenzie Haley ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 29, 2023
Diverting feline fun for Halloween (or any time of year).
A terrifying tome guaranteed to scare the stuffin’ outta ya (not really).
After a warning and a suggestion that readers find friendlier reading material about rainbows and such, the tale opens on a dismal, decrepit house (on a dark and stormy night, of course). Down a dim hallway sits a “ragged old door.” “And SOMETHING WAS THUMPING BEHIND THAT DOOR.” The door creaks open. A flash of lightning throws a menacing shadow across the floor—“Are you sure you want to turn the page?” The narrator notes that readers might rather read about ice cream sandwiches or crayons…for on the next page, the narrator is revealed to be…a tiny, white kitten with one wee fang (horrifying, huh?) The kitten’s not pleased that readers are laughing. The feline calls on a bevy of fiendish friends, among them adorable puppies (not menacing) and a plump yellow chick yelling “BOO!” (totally not bloodcurdling). The kitten’s sure the whole group can be made over to chill hearts. Nope. But wait…what’s that at the door? Messner goes full-on goofy with this tale of a feline determined to frighten. Haley’s not-so-dark cartoon illustrations of pudgy, sweet animals perfectly contradict the kitty’s narration. The cover featuring the cutie-patootie, jewel-eyed kitty spoils the central joke a bit, but hammed-up to the correct degree, this is sure to have ’em howling (with laughter, not fear) in the aisles. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Diverting feline fun for Halloween (or any time of year). (Picture book. 2-7)Pub Date: Aug. 29, 2023
ISBN: 9780374390051
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
Share your opinion of this book
More by Kate Messner
BOOK REVIEW
by Kate Messner ; illustrated by Heather Ross
BOOK REVIEW
by Grace Lin & Kate Messner ; illustrated by Grace Lin
BOOK REVIEW
by Kate Messner & Margaret E. Powell ; illustrated by Erin K. Robinson
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 23, 2014
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
Share your opinion of this book
More by Alice Schertle
BOOK REVIEW
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry
BOOK REVIEW
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph
BOOK REVIEW
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph
by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
Share your opinion of this book
© Copyright 2023 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.