(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Jonty Gentoo is a young penguin who is content in his zoo home until his aunts' tales of the South Pole awaken his desire to explore. "He longed for the snow / and he dreamed of the Pole. / 'To reach it,' he said, / 'is my one dearest goal.'" Jonty escapes his enclosure and swims to a distant land of snow and ice, surely "the land of the penguins." A polar bear regretfully informs Jonty that he's arrived at the North Pole. A migrating Arctic tern redirects the lost bird, and "the bird in the sea and the bird in the sky" travel to the South Pole, where Jonty is welcomed by "a heart-warming huddle of gorgeous gentoos." Donaldson and Scheffler's latest collaboration (notably The Gruffalo; most recently The Baddies, rev. 7/23) is a playful rhyming adventure that's fun to read aloud and well supported by Scheffler's recognizable cartoon illustrations. Back matter provides some information about the story's two "Amazing Birds." An uplifting tale of big dreams and friends who help along the way.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. The seasoned author-artist pair (recently The Smeds and the Smoos, rev. 3/21) bring their usual humor and spice to this rollicking story of three "baddies": a troll, a ghost, and a witch. When a girl with a "blue spotted hanky" moves into a nearby cottage, the three brag so much about their plans to eat her, haunt her, and turn her to stone, respectively, that a fed-up little white mouse offers a challenge: which one can scare her so much that they can steal the handkerchief? More boasting ensues, but each baddie fails to faze the girl, the very definition of sang-froid. And who ends up with the hanky? The little white mouse, who asks for help keeping her babies warm. Donaldson's propulsive verse will encourage reader participation, with lots of noisy words like splash and roar and ah-choo! to join in on (not to mention the witch's spell: "Hankety pankety / plinkety plonk, / rickety rackety rocket!"). Scheffler's richly colored signature illustrations abound with action and kid-pleasing details, and he manages to imbue even minor characters such as the witch's cat familiar with personality. Sure to wow 'em at story hour.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(2) PS Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Donaldson and Scheffler (most recently The Ugly Five, rev. 9/18) tell the story of the red Smeds and the blue Smoos, who share a far-off planet but deeply distrust each other (as the Smeds are warned: "Never, never play with the Smoos. / They sleep in holes. They wear strange shoes"). The antipathy goes unquestioned--until Smed Janet and Smoo Bill form a friendship. Rhyming couplets are peppered with nonsense words that, à la Dr. Seuss or Carroll's "The Jabberwocky," still somehow make sense; for example, "Janet met Bill in the Wurpular Wood, / Where the trockles grew tall / and the ­glompoms smell good." Scheffler's ink-and-­watercolor pictures have a zany cartoonish feel, paying homage to Seuss. The alien planet features a variety of comical flourishes, including quirky plants with teeth, spikes, or eyes; each surrounding planet, too, has its own distinct character. ­Donaldson's message is clear without being heavy-handed, with a satisfying final scene of harmonious joy over the new (purple) baby and the Smeds and Smoos, young and old, celebrating under the "silvery squoon."

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Sara Ogilvie. When the books in Peter's classroom go missing, his dog, "Detective Dog Nell," is on the case. The well-meaning "book thief" simply needed an introduction to the library. With peppy rhyming text (including some wording that reflects the book's UK origins), this action-packed story, illustrated with humorous, colorful vignettes and spreads, is a satisfying celebration of reading, perfect for storytime.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. This picture-book African safari introduces five lesser-known, "strange-looking" specimens (e.g., wildebeest, hyena). The patterned rhyming text lets the animals speak for themselves; each one describes its unusual features and unsavory behaviors. In a detailed grassland setting, Scheffler's charmingly homely characters showcase lots of personality. The sweet conclusion casts the ugly five in a more favorable light thanks to their loving and grateful babies. A final spread features more native savanna animals.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2018

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Donaldson and Scheffler's first collaboration, here reissued, derives from a Yiddish folktale. An old woman complains that her house is too small, so a wise old man advises her to take in all her animals, one at a time; when she takes them out again, her little house feels spacious. The rhyming text is appealingly illustrated with homey pictures of farm animals wreaking mild havoc.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(4) PS Illustrated by Charlotte Voake. Voake illustrates both Lear's classic poem and Donaldson's sequel to it; her eye-pleasing, loose-lined pen and watercolor style includes unique if somewhat head-scratching details (e.g., the green-skinned natives of the "land where the Bong-tree grows" in Edwardian-esque garb). Further Adventures's meter, made-up words, and nonsensical story line spun off from a sea voyage pay passable homage to Lear. Review covers these titles: The Further Adventures of The Owl and the Pussy-Cat and The Owl and the Pussy-Cat.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. In this sequel to A Gold Star for Zog, Pearl (a princess) and Gadabout (a knight) become traveling doctors. Pearl's only misdiagnosis is thinking that her uncle, the king, will welcome her ("Princesses can't be doctors!"). But when he falls ill, Pearl finds the cure. Donaldson's text contains near-faultless rhymes and plentiful humor; Scheffler, whose characters exhibit cuddlesome lumpiness, finds the comedy in every scene.

Reviewer: Nell Beram | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2017

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Anyone whose creativity has felt squelched by the moral of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" will welcome the denouement here: the fish hero is rescued by his tale-telling. Released from a fisherman's net in unknown territory, Tiddler retraces the route his own story has taken until he's safely home. Scheffler's comical illustrations in undersea hues reinforce the non-censorious tone.

Reviewer: Miriam Lang Budin

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury. A strange creature is holed up in Rabbit's burrow, scaring animals away with fierce rhyming threats (e.g., "I'm the GIANT JUMPEREE and I'll squash you like a flea"). Mama Frog finally orders the Giant Jumperee to come out, revealing her own mischievous child. Oxenbury's expertly rendered illustrations, with their spot-on body language and facial expressions, lend an extra layer of comedy to this entertaining tale.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Superworm is beloved by his many friends, including beetles, snails, and other creepy-crawlies. After he's kidnapped by Wizard Lizard, Superworm's friends conspire to rescue their pal. It's some old-fashioned storytelling, with snappy rhyming couplets and a bad guy with a threatening henchman, but Donaldson spruces things up with the particulars of a heroic worm. Scheffler's pictures pop with strong lines and vibrant colors.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2014

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. While off searching for the perfect pink flowers for Betty O'Barley, his bride-to-be, Harry O'Hay the scarecrow is replaced by dashing Reginald Rake. But Betty doesn't fall for Reginald's wild ways, and when fire threatens, Harry is the hero. Jovial, stiff-armed scarecrows and wide-eyed animals star in a charmingly odd tale of true love told in singsongy rhymes.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Though "The Highway Rat was a baddie," he's a comical one, seizing edibles from animals and even "his own horse's hay!" Finally, a clever duck lures the Rat into a cave with promises of sweets while his victims feast on retrieved loot. Scheffler's cartoon-style illustrations enhance the tongue-in-cheek rhyme with lively portraits of bug-eyed animals looking askance at the not-particularly-fearsome Rat.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2013

(2) PS Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Having faithfully brought Zog remedies for his ailments at dragon school, a girl finally reveals that she's a princess just as Zog fears he's about to fail year four's capture-a-princess test. Bouncing smoothly along, the rhyming text shows how the friendship between Zog and Princess Pearl comes to benefit them both. The illustrations feature a multicolored, endearingly homely cast of cartoon dragons.

Reviewer: Christine M. Heppermann | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2012

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. Unexpectedly separated from human musician Fred, Tabby McTat leaves street performing behind to start a family. His son Samuel Sprat inherits Tabby's musical gift, and when Tabby and Fred are reunited, Samuel begs to become Fred's new busking partner. Detailed illustrations feature amiable kitties and eccentric entertainers on bustling city streets, while the lyrical rhyming text is reminiscent of a ballad.

Reviewer: Rebecca Reed Whidden

(3) PS Illustrated by Lydia Monks. A ladybug who "never said a word" overhears robbers plotting to steal the farmer's prize cow. She saves the day by speaking up to tell the animals how they can foil the plan. Donaldson's rhyming text is full of kid-friendly language ("the farmer woke and said, 'Golly gosh!'") and is well matched with Monks's vibrant collage illustrations.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(3) YA Recently orphaned, Leo (short for Leonora) flees her mother's extended family in London to search for her Chinese father's estranged parents in Glasgow and to escape her potentially dangerous uncle. Leo and her friends compose an endearing cast of characters, and the story's multiperspective approach creates plenty of dramatic tension.

Reviewer: Hannah Rodgers Barnaby

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. "Stick Man lives in the family tree / With his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three." After being mistaken for a plain old stick, Stick Man suffers many indignities--then finds himself in a fireplace on Christmas Eve. Donaldson's lively rhymes and Scheffler's comical illustrations (never has a stick looked more engaging) help temper worries about our hero's fate.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2009

(3) PS Illustrated by Axel Scheffler. In this rhyming story, a lost monkey keeps trying to describe his mother to a well-meaning but mixed-up butterfly. The butterfly leads him to all sorts of animals--from an elephant to a spider--before they finally locate Mom. Readers will likely chuckle at the butterfly's mistakes and enjoy the illustrations of forest fauna, including the comical long-nosed butterfly.

Reviewer: Martha Sibert

(3) K-3 Illustrated by David Roberts. A river is all that separates the placid duckbill dinosaurs from the hungry tyrannosaurs on the other side. This sideways retelling of the Ugly Duckling tale has a duckbill hatchling raised as a T-rex until he runs away and discovers his own kind. The rhythm of the text is as right as the goofy details strewn throughout the clean-lined illustrations.

Reviewer: David Elzey