A bedtime story bursting with strong, quiet love.
Hinting at a stunning sunset, illustrations in deeply vibrant, softly dappled oranges, reds, and purples begin this gentle nighttime story of animal parents and offspring settling in for a night’s rest. The text on each page follows a soothing pattern but also plays with both internal and end rhymes for an added treat. “As the crows fly / and the rivers flow, // As the eagles cry / and the winds blow,” the book opens. Later: “As the rabbits hop / and the owls call, // As the leaves drop / and the rains fall,” it continues pages later, still the same sentence. Young listeners are introduced to several birds, farm animals, and woodland mammals as well as frogs, turtles, and snakes. (There’s also a lion family, quite out of place but useful for the rhyme.) By the end of the story, it is now a starry moonlit night illustrated in dark reds, purples, and blues, and readers have moved from wildlife to city life, with the sentence finally concluding: “As the stars gleam / high above, // the babies dream / safe in our love.” The final image frames five different families in urban windows glowing with that love. The illustration suggests both family and racial diversity and includes what appear to be single-parent, two-parent, same-gender, and multigenerational families of White, Asian, and Black origin. In one family, the father wears a kippah. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Lush illustrations and lulling, playful verse create a warm and wonderful bedtime hug. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4338-3681-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Magination/American Psychological Association
Review Posted Online: June 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
Categories: CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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The popular character enjoys storytime, painting, and a snack on the very first day of preschool.
The younger incarnation of Pete the Cat packs his backpack that he picked out from the store himself, gets a snack from his mom, and rides the school bus with his big brother, Bob (who isn’t much bigger than Pete, sizewise). At school, Pete meets his stylish teacher, Mrs. Lopez, and fellow feline classmates while keeping his signature cool. The day ends with Pete declaring: “Preschool is awesome! Pete loves everything!” James Dean’s big-eyed cats populate the simply drawn scenes that look as though they were painted in preschool-esque fashion with thick swaths of tempera. At a couple of moments (when he eats his banana and declares it tasty and when he sings along) his customarily expressionless face actually breaks into a smile. Kimberly Dean’s text is uninspired, but it’s in sync with the upbeat tone of the series. Pete’s preschool experience, while not particularly realistic, is a highly positive one; refreshingly, there is no trace of the separation anxiety or anxiousness found in many first-day-of-school books.
Likely to be popular with young Pete the Cat fans and parents seeking a gentle introduction to preschool. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: June 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06243582-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HarperFestival
Review Posted Online: July 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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SEEN & HEARD
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