A wolf pup gets help from other animals to find his way home.
Rhyming text, which at times falters in its cadence, tells the story of Wilf, a wolf pup separated from his pack during a blizzard. His situation worsens when the ice beneath him cracks and he plunges down into cold, Arctic waters. A narwhal saves him, and thus begins a series of fortunate events in which different animals help Wilf reunite with his pack. First a walrus, then a musk ox, an arctic fox, a goose, a moose, and finally a bear-moth help him along the way. The storytelling itself fits squarely into the well-trod home-away-home plotline, and it doesn’t offer much for readers to sink their teeth into. The detailed, cartoony art would be right at home in contemporary animation for the big screen, adding visual interest in several spreads. Wilf’s big, blue eyes herald his vulnerability on many spreads, but unfortunately, some nighttime scenes will be far too dark for readers’ eyes, and the print is at times difficult to discern on pages where the print is blue on black.
An uneven package that may leave readers a bit cold. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-59274-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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A bilingual love poem of admiration and respect for the millions of monarch butterflies that journey south to Mexico every year.
From a chrysalis on the title page, Señorita Mariposa invites readers to follow the monarch butterfly as it embarks on a journey spanning thousands of miles, “Over mountains capped with snow… / To the deserts down below.” In the same manner, the monarch butterfly exiting the chrysalis at the end of the book then invites readers to flip back to the beginning and restart the journey. Almada Rivero’s warm and friendly illustrations showcase the various people and animals the monarch encounters in its 3,000-mile journey, including a couple of brown-skinned children who welcome Señorita Mariposa to Mexico as the text reads, “Can’t believe how far you’ve come.” Gundersheimer’s recounting of the lepidoptera’s journey is told in a bilingual poem, English set in a serif type and Spanish set in sans-serif. Like the butterfly traveling south and north, the languages switch prominence, displaying in the larger font the principal—and rhyming—language in each spread. Although at times distracting, this technique is a valiant attempt to give equal importance to each language. Backmatter includes facts on the round trip the butterflies undertake, the “super generation” that makes the trek south, and a call to action to protect the monarchs as they slowly lose their habitats.
Uplifting and inspiring of further research. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-4070-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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BOOK REVIEW
The pigeon is back, and he is filthy!
Readers haven’t seen the pigeon for a couple of years, not since The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? (2012), and apparently he hasn’t bathed in all that time. Per the usual routine, the bus driver (clad in shower cap and bathrobe) opens the story by asking readers to help convince the pigeon to take a bath. Though he’s covered in grime, the obstreperous bird predictably resists. He glares at readers and suggests that maybe they need baths. With the turn of the page, Willems anticipates readers’ energetic denials: The pigeon demands, “YEAH! When was the last time YOU had a bath?!” Another beat allows children to supply the answer. “Oh.” A trio of flies that find him repulsive (“P.U.!”) convinces him it’s time. One spread with 29 separate panels depicts the pigeon adjusting the bath (“Too wet!…Too cold.…Too reflective”) before the page turn reveals him jumping in with a spread-filling “SPLASH!” Readers accustomed to the pigeon formula will note that here the story breaks from its normal rhythms; instead of throwing a tantrum, the pigeon discovers what readers already know: “This is FUN!” All the elements are in place, including page backgrounds that modulate from dirty browns to fresh, clean colors and endpapers that bookend the story (including a very funny turnabout for the duckling, here a rubber bath toy).
Willems’ formula is still a winner. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4231-9087-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2014
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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