Spend the day with a little bunny and their papa as they explore the world around them to the familiar tune of “Hush, Little Baby.”
“Hush, little bunny, don’t you cry. // Papa’s gonna give you the big blue sky. / And if that big blue sky clouds over, // Papa’s gonna give you a patch of clover.” The winter snow has melted, and Papa is ready to take his little bunny out into the beautiful spring world. From tasty patches of clover to nibble to scary hawks to hide from, Papa teaches little bunny everything they need to know about being a bunny in the meadow. More importantly, he shows that he will always be there for the little bunny. Charming illustrations bring the bunny duo to life and will certainly catch children’s eyes right off the bat. Done in Stein’s characteristically loose and scratchy style, the bunnies frolic and gambol with abandon. Despite the reference to danger in the form of the hawks, the illustration depicts them wheeling in the sky in the distance; when the bunnies take shelter, they are cozily nestled in a burrow with no predator in sight. Caregivers will be sure to relate to the loving papa bunny, while children will enjoy singing along to the lullaby.
While this hardly reinvents the wheel, it is a solid addition to the children’s lullaby-book genre. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-284522-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 30, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S POETRY | CHILDREN'S FAMILY
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Dot, the smallest reindeer at the North Pole, is too little to fly with the reindeer team on Christmas Eve, but she helps Santa in a different, unexpected way.
Dot is distressed because she can’t jump and fly like the other, bigger reindeer. Her family members encourage her and help her practice her skills, and her mother tells her, “There’s always next year.” Dot’s elf friend, Oliver, encourages her and spends time playing with her, doing things that Dot can do well, such as building a snowman and chasing their friend Yeti (who looks like a fuzzy, white gumdrop). On Christmas Eve, Santa and the reindeer team take off with their overloaded sleigh. Only Dot notices one small present that’s fallen in the snow, and she successfully leaps into the departing sleigh with the gift. This climactic flying leap into the sleigh is not adequately illustrated, as Dot is shown just starting to leap and then already in the sleigh. A saccharine conclusion notes that being little can sometimes be great and that “having a friend by your side makes anything possible.” The story is pleasant but predictable, with an improbably easy solution to Dot’s problem. Illustrations in a muted palette are similarly pleasant but predictable, with a greeting-card flavor that lacks originality. The elf characters include boys, girls, and adults; all the elves and Santa and Mrs. Claus are white.
A forgettable tale. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-338-15738-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 21, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2017
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This reassuring picture book exemplifies how parents throughout the animal kingdom make homes for their offspring.
The narrative is written from the point of view of a parent talking to their child: “If you were a beaver, I would gnaw on trees with my teeth to build a cozy lodge for us to sleep in during the day.” Text appears in big, easy-to-read type, with the name of the creature in boldface. Additional facts about the animal appear in a smaller font, such as: “Beavers have transparent eyelids to help them see under water.” The gathering of land, air, and water animals includes a raven, a flying squirrel, and a sea lion. “Home” might be a nest, a den, or a burrow. One example, of a blue whale who has homes in the north and south (ocean is implied), will help children stretch the concept into feeling at home in the larger world. Illustrations of the habitats have an inviting luminosity. Mature and baby animals are realistically depicted, although facial features appear to have been somewhat softened, perhaps to appeal to young readers. The book ends with the comforting scene of a human parent and child silhouetted in the welcoming lights of the house they approach: “Wherever you may be, you will always have a home with me.”
Instills a sense of well-being in youngsters while encouraging them to explore the natural world. (Informational picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63217-224-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bigfoot/Sasquatch
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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