As a digital subscriber, you’ll receive unlimited access to Horn Book web exclusives and extensive archives, as well as access to our highly searchable Guide/Reviews Database.
To access other site content, visit The Horn Book homepage.
To continue you need an active subscription to hbook.com.
Subscribe now to gain immediate access to everything hbook.com has to offer, as well as our highly searchable Guide/Reviews Database, which contains tens of thousands of short, critical reviews of books published in the United States for young people.
Thank you for registering. To have the latest stories delivered to your inbox, select as many free newsletters as you like below.
No thanks. Return to article
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Ada Grey.
Hearing a bubbling from the creek, Mouse is inspired to squeak along. The rhythm soon has a bird, centipede, monkey, warthog, and crocodile jamming, too, until Hippo, whose submarine hiccups started it all, pops out of the water to claim some credit. Dynamic, colorful illustrations and cumulative, chorus-encouraging onomatopoetic lines largely make up for those rhythms and rhymes that stumble a bit.
32 pp.
| Capstone
| February, 2014
|
TradeISBN 978-1-62370-118-5$14.95
(4)
PS
Illustrated by
Emma Yarlett.
Bear's big bottom, an obstacle when playing with his smaller forest friends, empties the pool at a party and has a disastrous effect on squirrel's birthday cake. It saves the day, however, when they are threatened by a hungry fox. Though the peppy rhyming story is predictable, young kids will appreciate the humorous illustrations celebrating Bear's overlarge derrière from all angles.
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Richard Watson.
"It was a dreamy, sunbeamy day in Cupcake Wood." So begins this gentle, gutsy parody of twee children's books about frolicsome woodland animals. Here, owl Scowl is so grouchy that he says "Get lost!" when someone gives him something, which ultimately leads him to experience an unfamiliar emotion: empathy. Watson subtly mocks animal cute-ification without insulting fans of the genre.
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Robert Dunn.
This slight story aimed only at NYC residents or tourists describes Santa's Christmas Eve journey to the Big Apple. In this very modern take, his "Santa-nav" (GPS) doesn't help in a blizzard, but Santa is saved when his youngest reindeer hears the bells of St. Patrick's Cathedral. The usual city hot spots are mentioned in the purposeful text and pictured in the chipper illustrations.
24 pp.
| Good
| June, 2012
|
TradeISBN 978-1-56148-744-8$16.99
(3)
PS
Illustrated by
Sean Julian.
In the rhymed story, a little bear wants to be just like his dad when he gets big. “Some dads join you when you jump in a puddle,” and other adventures such as swimming and camping are highlights. Burping and tooting are part of the experience, too. Cheerful illustrations depict father and cub engaged in activities from morning till bedtime.
32 pp.
| Good
| October, 2011
|
TradeISBN 978-1-56148-725-7$16.99
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Caroline Pedler.
Four hungry little bunnies take turns searching for carrots, but each returns empty-handed. The last--and littlest--bunny won't be deterred by the "Big Bad Bully Bunny." Soft pastel-hued illustrations portraying a peaceful garden where the little bunnies gather carrots (and teach the bullying bunny a lesson) soften the blow of the BBBB's nasty words ("You're really, really ugly!").
32 pp.
| Good
| October, 2010
|
TradeISBN 978-1-56148-695-3$16.99
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Lee Wildish.
Five bored Vikings, seeking a bold new adventure, hunt for a dragon to turn into stew. They encounter an enormous--and enormously polite--creature whose patience is tested after being repeatedly poked. A little flame to the Vikings' backsides brings the hunt to a close. Wildish's silly illustrations include such details as burning bums and odoriferous socks. Smallman's text, though humorous, lacks fluidity.