Review by New York Times Review
A talking tiger, a crocodile doctor, a sad pair of socks and more in these stories to fire up a kid's imagination. LITTLE DOCTOR AND THE FEARLESS BEAST Written and illustrated by Sophie Gilmore. Little Doctor is a specialist in crocodiles, as we can see from the enormous green patients who flock to her examination room (which, shhhh, may just be a backyard office). She ministers to them with deep concentration, applying long bandages and tender, expert care - and cures them all except a toughie called Big Mean, who refuses to unclasp her jaws. There's a scary trip inside the beast's mouth, and a happy ending involving the adorable hatchlings Big Mean was of course carrying in there. With its softly detailed, virtuoso art and a perfectly wrought story full of heart and respect for the imaginative rules of children's play, this debut shines. 32 pp. Owlkids. $17.95. (Ages 4 to 8.) THINKER: MY PUPPY POET AND ME By Eloise Greenfield. Illustrated by Ehsan Abdollahi. In this charming book of linked poems - the story of a pup who speaks, but only in verse - the distinguished children's poet Green-field glides gracefully between rhyme, free verse, haiku and rap. A boy named Jace becomes the dog's owner. He names him Thinker ("I'm deep and I'm a poet," the dog warns. "A cute name's not O.K.") and the two have back-and-forth chats about life. On every page, Abdollahi's collaged illustrations bring the characters to life with a soulful flair. 32 pp. Jabberwocky/Sourcebooks. $15.99. (Ages 4 to 8.) MY PAPI HAS A MOTORCYCLE By Isabel Quintero. Illustrated by Zeke Peña. Southern California is home to almost 24 million, yet few picture books show us life there, or tell stories about its vibrant immigrant communities. This delightful book bursts into the gap: A girl named Daisy takes a spin on the back of her carpenter papi's motorcycle, greeting friends and relatives, noting historical murals and stopping at his work site. "Even in all that noise, my papi's voice touches everything," she says. There's no earthshaking story, just the sweet rumble of family love, neighborhood pride, the dignity of work and the joy of a fast ride. Yet Quintero's warm, economical text and the desert-sunset tones of Pena's comics-inflected art feel like a revelation. 32 pp. Kokila/Penguin Random House. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8.) VAMOS! LET'S GO TO THE MARKET By Raul the Third. Like "My Papi Has a Motorcycle," this book opens a welcome and welcoming door into Latino culture. Raul the Third also offers zany humor and low-key language lessons (assorted Spanish words are translated in the margins). Little Lobo, a nattily dressed wolf, makes deliveries to a marketplace of artisans, entertainers and vendors. "Everywhere people are going to work. Everyone has a different job," from puppeteer to pinata maker. With an array of interesting creatures and vignettes crammed into the illustrations, the effect is a high-spirited hybrid of Richard Scarry and Mexican comics. 48 pp. Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. $14.99. (Ages 4 to 8.) SOCK STORY By CK Smouha. Illustrated by Eleonora Marton. Two socks, a pair, tumble around in the washing machine, doing tricks like "double axel triple flip" and annoying the larger items. It's all fun and games until the spin cycle, when they're separated - and one takes refuge in the pocket of a non-color-fast red shirt. Eek! Can an unmatching duo still be partners? Those raising a style-conscious child will know the answer these days is a resounding yes. Still, Smouha and Marton wring genuine suspense and edgy humor out of this clever, colorful tale. 32 pp. Cicada. $14.95. (Ages 4 to 8.) THE HIDEOUT By Susanna Mattiangeli. Illustrated by Felicita Sala. Nothing beats a secret place, and even better if, as in this enthralling story, it's hidden in a public space. Someone's calling Hannah, but she's decided to go live inside a bush in the park, wearing a feather cape, making a fire and befriending an Odd Furry Creature. Or did she just draw the whole thing? The homage here to "Where the Wild Things Are" may be subtle, but it brings a smile. 32 pp. Abrams. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8.) POWER UP By Seth Fishman. Illustrated by Isabel Greenberg. Your pinkie, this innovative book explains, "has enough energy to light up one of the biggest cities in the world" for a day Fishman and Greenberg ("A Hundred Billion Trillion Stars") turn something kids instinctively understand - the energy in our bodies - into a lesson in biology and physics, and the real importance of food and sleep. 40 pp. Greenwillow/HarperCollins. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8.) CAMP TIGER By Susan Choi. Illustrated by John Rocco. Summer's almost over, and the narrator of this sweetly mysterious first children's book by the literary novelist Choi is dreading the start of first grade. A family camping trip brings him face to face with a tiger - one that talks. With the tiger's help, the boy catches a fish and even, in a stunning wordless sequence, ventures into the woods at night to leap across rocks and howl at the moon. Rocco's ("Blackout") art gives an emotionally astute story even more depth. 40 pp. Putnam. $17.99. (Ages 5 to 8.) MARIA RUSSO is the children's books editor for the Book Review.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [May 12, 2019]
Review by Booklist Review
In Gilmore's tender story of bravery and compassion, a young girl lives alone in the jungle, where she treats sick and injured crocodiles. As payment, the animals tell Little Doctor, as she is known, exciting stories of fearless beasts. Spot-art vignettes in soft, earth-tone watercolors show Little Doctor's gentle ministrations to the crocodiles, while a dramatic two-page spread swirls with images from the tales her patients have shared. Her talents are put to the test one day when an enormous crocodile named Big Mean arrives on her porch. It takes all of Little Doctor's patience and ingenuity not to mention courage to ascertain what's troubling Big Mean, but Little Doctor perseveres, earning the distinction of Fearless Beast from her animal friends. Where the regular crocs fit easily on the page, Big Mean must squeeze into her scenes, curling into Little Doctor's house or contorting onto the page for her examinations. It is a simple but effective way to convey Big Mean's imposing size and, similarly, the magnitude of Little Doctor's determination and kindness. These qualities reverberate throughout the book to offer readers an enthralling demonstration of kindness in action, helmed by a confident, brown-skinned girl in a doctor's coat.--Julia Smith Copyright 2019 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Little Doctor is a girl with rosy cheeks, brown hair, and a white lab coat, and her clinic's population is made up of crocodiles. She removes their splinters and frees them from snares, and in return they entertain her with legends of "terrible danger, dizzying escapes, and acts of great mischief." With delicate lines, debut author Gilmore imagines Little Doctor's tidy working space and the different ways she cares for the reptiles, who are portrayed both sympathetically and without sentiment. One day, Big Mean appears at Little Doctor's clinic, fierce and massive, her jaw clamped shut. The girl does her best to diagnose the trouble, but it takes some doing-and a moment of terror-before her treatment wins praise from Big Mean herself. Gilmore's breezy tone keeps scariness at bay ("But moments passed, and she was not munched nor crunched"), and her illustrations are at once dreamy and believable. The conceit of a primary school-aged child who is already a seasoned medical professional provides charm from the outset, and Little Doctor's bravery comes from wisdom and kindness. Another quiet lesson concerns the threat that humans pose to wild animals. Ages 5-8. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Horn Book Review
This books Little Doctor, like William Steigs Doctor De Soto (rev. 4/83) before her, provides medical care to animals who are potentially dangerous. In this case the patients are crocodiles, and the doctor is a small girl. She administers medicine, provides splints for tails, bandages wounds, and removes splinters in her lovely light-filled, book-lined office with its glimpses of the surrounding jungle. The crocodiles, a gentle bunch, pay her with stories, tales of fearless beasts. So far, so sweetbut there is underlying tension, involving teeth and jaws. This tension intensifies when Big Mean, a crocodile whose name says it all, seeks treatment. Big Means hostile attitude challenges Little Doctors bedside manner, but the doctor is undeterred and finally diagnoses the problem: in her mouth, Big Mean has transported a clutch of crocodile hatchlings who have become entangled in a piece of plastic debris. Watercolor illustrations give this narrative its energy. Little Doctors office, and its visitors, are rich in detail and in texturescaly crocodile hide, smooth wood floors, shiny houseplants, a crisp white lab coat. In the lush plants and in the bodies of the crocodiles Gilmore demonstrates the possibilities of line and color: a repeating oval curve and a particular shade of gray-green. This is a dreamy story, wrapped in a gorgeous package, with an important environmentalist reminder: cut up those plastic six-pack rings before you chuck them. sarah ellis (c) Copyright 2019. 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 young girl must figure out a way to help a sharp-toothed and fearsome creature many times her size.Crocodiles come from all over the jungle to see the child they call Little Doctor, who attends to a variety of ailments: splinters, sprains, and self-esteem issues. In return for her ministrations they regale the girl with stories of adventure and fearless beasts. Then an enormous crocodile known as Big Mean appears at the girl's door, and it takes some patience and an accidental trip inside Big Mean's jaws to diagnose the problem. Little Doctor frees four hatchlings (carried gently inside Big Mean's mouth) tangled and trapped by a plastic beverage yoke. Gilmore's crocodiles, both large and small, are reptilian and sly, even dangerous-looking, accentuating the child's devotion to these far-from-cuddly creatures. The girl is light-skinned, slim, determined, and serious. Her house in the jungle is filled with crocodile-themed art, including diagrams of the crocodilian life cycle and anatomy, and tools of the doctor's tradeclipboards, a reflex hammer. The art is angular and detailed, with fine lines and subtle colors. The use of the word "fearless" instead of "fearsome" to describe the crocodiles emphasizes the courage it takes both humans and wild creatures to trust. Big Mean repays with a tale of "great daring and determination"a story about the Little Doctor herself. A rousing, toothy adventure. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
