This baby gorilla’s hungry, but he’s awfully picky; what does he want?
“Look up and you’ll see ’em, high in the trees… / Bright yellow bunches in ones, twos, and threes.” The gorillas gather bananas for dinner, but first Baby needs a bath. Then Daddy swings in with a special treat! It’s a grilled peanut-butter–and-banana sandwich (an Elvis A. Presley, natch). “That little gorilla pops out a pink tongue. / He seems pretty picky for someone so young.” His parents guess he wants “something wild.” They try bananas au gratin, banana chips, banana tandoori, bananas flambé, even banana sushi rolls….Baby won’t touch them. His parents juice the fruits, bake ’em, and put them in fudge—all to no avail. With his parents exhausted on the floor, Baby grabs the last plain, untouched banana and gobbles it up! He never wanted anything fancy. Wensink and Wragg’s follow-up to Go Go Gorillas (2017) riffs neatly on the theme of the picky eater with a rhymed fable that’s a foodie fantasy. Bright dynamic illustrations, mostly full-bleed, crafted with acrylic and digital color swing through the jungle and the kitchen.
Little monkeys will enjoy the rhyme and maybe pick up some new food vocabulary…and so might their caregivers. (Picture book. 2-8)Pub Date: Aug. 14, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-238120-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 25, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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Graziano tells the story of his TikTok-famous pug, Noodle.
Noodle is a silly, stubborn old pug who likes walks and snacks. “He’s a pug who knows what he wants.” Jonathan, his light-skinned owner, loves taking Noodle for walks and sharing snacks—they are a perfect pair. But one day, when it’s time for a walk, Noodle just lies in his dog bed. Even when Jonathan tries to make Noodle sit up, Noodle flops back down. “It’s like he doesn’t have bones!” says Jonathan. Noodle doesn’t seem sick—he just wants snacks and to stay in bed. Finally, Jonathan asks if Noodle would just like to snuggle instead and receives a strong affirmative from the drowsy pug. Together Noodle and his human enjoy a relaxing “no bones day” and learn an important lesson about rest and why it matters for silly, stubborn old pugs and for the humans who love them, too. Many may already be familiar with Noodle through his TikTok videos (if Noodle remains standing when Graziano lifts him, it’s a “bones day”; among Noodle’s followers, a “no bones day” has come to mean a day for self-care and taking it easy). However, this story stands alone and will likely create new fans for a long time to come. Hand-drawn and painted digitally, Tavis’ illustrations rely on a muted palette and rounded images, depicting an appropriately cozy world. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A perfect story to enjoy on a “no bones day.” (author's note) (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-66592-710-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: May 11, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S HEALTH & DAILY LIVING
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Hee haw.
32
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The print version of a knee-slapping cumulative ditty.
In the song, Smith meets a donkey on the road. It is three-legged, and so a “wonky donkey” that, on further examination, has but one eye and so is a “winky wonky donkey” with a taste for country music and therefore a “honky-tonky winky wonky donkey,” and so on to a final characterization as a “spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky-dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey.” A free musical recording (of this version, anyway—the author’s website hints at an adults-only version of the song) is available from the publisher and elsewhere online. Even though the book has no included soundtrack, the sly, high-spirited, eye patch–sporting donkey that grins, winks, farts, and clumps its way through the song on a prosthetic metal hoof in Cowley’s informal watercolors supplies comical visual flourishes for the silly wordplay. Look for ready guffaws from young audiences, whether read or sung, though those attuned to disability stereotypes may find themselves wincing instead or as well.
Hee haw. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-545-26124-1
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 29, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS
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