Review by New York Times Review
Edda's home is in Asgard, "a land full of magic and adventure." But Edda, the littlest Valkyrie, doesn't have quite enough to do, until her father flies her "all the way to Earth for the first day of school." The contrast between home and school is hard to get used to (in one, she can ride reindeer; in the other she gazes through glass at the classroom guinea pig). In his first picture book, Auerbach mingles the two worlds unapologetically. Children are likely to appreciate the joke. MY TEACHER IS A MONSTER! (NO, I AM NOT.) Written and illustrated by Peter Brown. 40 pp. Little, Brown. $18. (Picture book; ages 4 to 7) Brown, who won a 2013 Caldecott Honor for "Creepy Carrots!," can really make a teacher look terrifying. Ms. Kirby is as enormous as a rhino, with pointed teeth and big clawed hands. She stomps around and yells, and Bobby, one of the boys in her class, has gotten on her bad side by throwing a paper airplane. Later, when they meet by accident in the park, it's awkward. But "a gust of wind changed everything," and Bobby learns that appearances are not always as they seem. PLANET KINDERGARTEN By Sue Ganz-Schmitt. Illustrated by Shane Prigmore. 32 pp. Chronicle. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 4 to 7) After careful preparations and a successful blastoff, a boy finds himself in a very unfamiliar environment. "We're aliens from many galaxies on Planet Kindergarten," he reflects as he sees his very varied classmates for the first time. Prigmore, who designs for the movie industry, deploys black backgrounds, bright, popping colors and crazy layouts to give this space adventure visual excitement and madcap humor. THE SMALLEST GIRL IN THE SMALLEST GRADE By Justin Roberts. Illustrated by Christian Robinson. 32 pp. Putnam. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) It makes sense that the author of the long, rhyming lines in "The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade" is a children's music performer. This is a ballad, really, about the power of one small person to fight injustice. Sally, whom no one ever seems to notice, is "paying super extra special attention" to the "terrible stuff" happening around her. When she decides to take action, she's not alone for long. Robinson's colored-pencil illustrations give this inspiring story an appropriately childlike style. AND TWO BOYS BOOED By Judith Viorst. Illustrated by Sophie Black-all. 32 pp. Margaret Ferguson/Farrar, Straus & Giroux. $16.99. (Lift-the-flap picture book; ages 4 to 8) Ever felt quietly confident one minute, and a shivering mess the next? In Viorst's witty story about perseverance, a little boy wakes up thinking about singing his song in the class talent show. Blackall, who brings quirky expression to every illustration, shows him under a lift-the-flap patchwork quilt, eyes wide with excitement. But as he waits to perform, even his words get confused: "On the talent of the morning show, I was ready to song my sing." Just doing it turns out to be the solution. ONLINE A slide show of this week's illustrated books at nytimes.com/books.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [September 7, 2014]
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
For one brave boy, kindergarten isn't just a grade-it's a destination. He gets to school via rocket (one that looks suspiciously like his father's hatchback), and considers his classmates to be aliens, including two that could be relatives of Cousin It. The boy adjusts to "zero gravity" ("We have to try hard to stay in our seats. And our hands go up a lot"), discovers that he likes space food, and freaks out during naptime: "Is the room running out of oxygen?" Prigmore's manic digital art gives a nod to Jetsons-era cartoons, while Ganz-Schmitt's metaphor will ring true with intrepid readers. Ages 3-5. Author's agent: Jennifer Unter, the Unter Agency. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-In a clever take on the classic "first day of school" story, this tale uses space exploration as an extended metaphor. Through the comforting lens of his space obsession, a young boy processes the many new experiences of kindergarten. Kids who aren't familiar with space travel may struggle to understand the sophisticated NASA-inspired lingo without the physical picture book's visual cues. Terminology such as commander, mission control, and capsule could send contextless children into a frustrated tailspin, and the youngest auditors may need a more knowledgeable translator to guide them through the first couple of listens. Noah Galvin narrates with a crackly adolescent voice, creating a slightly disconcerting dichotomy between the kindergarten-aged protagonist and the middle school-aged reader. Space-loving kids will get a kick out of this recording; others may just be left in orbit-although they'll get a vocabulary lesson in the process.-Jennifer Verbrugge, State Library Services, Roseville, MN (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Whether starting at the kindergarten around the corner or on another planet, the mission is always a daring one for new students to accomplish. This book's square-headed, freckle-faced protagonist is ready for takeoff, counting down the days, preparing the supplies, passing the physical, and belting himself in for the ride -- and that all happens before the title page. When he arrives at Planet Kindergarten, he discovers that his young classmates from around the galaxy are just as nervous as he is. All the details of starting school -- the strange rules of hand-raising and staying seated; playground scuffles; cafeteria procedures; making friends with someone completely new and different -- are described in a light, tongue-in-cheek style aimed at providing reassurance for children (and their nervous parents). Saturated digital illustrations with a 1950s-throwback vibe accompany this humorous space-age take on the traditional first-day-of-school story. There is so much to laugh at here that even the most terrified child will stand tall and join in with the NASA refrain "FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION." Sure to comfort and amuse many a new space traveler and the grateful teachers who will read this aloud over and over during the first few weeks of school. robin l. smith (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A genius way to ease kids into the new adventure that is kindergarten.In an imaginative ruse that's maintained through the whole book, a young astronaut prepares for his mission to Planet Kindergarten. On liftoff day (a space shuttle-themed calendar counts down the days; a stopwatch, the minutes), the small family boards their rocket ship (depicted in the illustrations as the family car), and "the boosters fire." They orbit base camp while looking for a docking place. "I am assigned to my commander, capsule, and crewmates." Though he's afraid, he stands tall and is brave (not just once, eitherthe escape hatch beckons, but NASA's saying gets him through: "FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION"). Parents will certainly chuckle along with this one, but kindergarten teachers' stomach muscles will ache: "[G]ravity works differently here. We have to try hard to stay in our seats. And our hands go up a lot." Prigmore's digital illustrations are the perfect complement to the tongue-in-cheek text. Bold colors, sharp lines and a retro-space style play up the theme. The intrepid explorer's crewmates are a motley assortment of "aliens"among them are a kid in a hoodie with the laces pulled so tight that only a nose and mouth are visible; a plump kid with a bluish cast to his skin; and a pinkish girl with a toothpick-thin neck and huge bug eyes.Sure to assuage the fears of all astronauts bound for similar missions. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
