With blithe disregard for credibility or consequences, Jane showers young Milo with treats and rewards after he wreaks destruction along a parade route after blowing off parental orders. Despite being grounded, Milo chases his dog through a conveniently open gate, then knocks over a line of pushcarts along the way. Having created enough wreckage to reroute the parade, he elbows a firefighter, who benevolently gives him a T-shirt, then gets to “drive” a fire engine past his house. Showing not a trace of remorse in Johnson’s bland, smiley art, Milo returns home to mug at viewers while his sister makes a snide comment about how he missed everything. Even less discriminating readers will see a world of difference between David Shannon’s engaging, eponymous ne’er-do-well and this sociopath. (Picture book. 6-7)
Pub Date: May 1, 2001
ISBN: 1-59034-192-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Mondo Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2002
Categories: CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
Did you like this book?
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Mouse’s First Christmas (32 pp.; $12.00; Oct. 1; 0-689-82325-8) Arriving in the snowy avalanche of holiday titles, this book begins with a bit of rhymed play on the beginning of Clement Moore’s poem, as Mouse investigates something “sweet and sparkly,” a cookie, “warm and melty” hot cocoa, and so on through candy, bells, angels, candles, presents, the tree, and finally, Santa himself. The language is either twee or pedestrian, and doesn’t really engage readers or onlookers in Mouse’s mission. The illustrations are done in thick holiday pigments: reds, greens, blues, and golds; the typeface is occasionally treated playfully. Insubstantial but wrapped prettily. (Picture book. 2-6)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-82325-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
Did you like this book?
From Powell (A Bold Carnivore, 1995) comes Gary Paulsen-like insight: Once a sled dog, always a sled dog, for although a Newfoundland named Cora is getting too old to pull, her owners can’t get the hearty dog to quit. Every Christmas the dogs help a mother, father, and Susan bring home a Christmas tree from the snowy woods. This year, Cora is not hitched up with the other two sled dogs in her bright red harness. She refuses to stay home, and follows the family into the forest. At first Cora gets underfoot; the family doesn’t understand what she is trying to do. But when the tree is selected, chopped down, and tied to the sled, Cora leads the other dogs—helping in spirit, if not in fact. Powell’s colorful woodcuts portray a crisp snow-filled north woods with deep blue shadows and green pines. The Yuletide setting is background dressing; the interactions of dogs and family predominate. An affectionate, unusual story. (Picture book. 4-7)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-8075-5968-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Whitman
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS
Did you like this book?
© Copyright 2022 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
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.
