Review by New York Times Review
A duckling begins this sweet, profound book on the verge of that astonishing moment when groups of letters transform from gobbledygook to words. Finding a book without pictures, he scoffs. But the white pages explode with beautiful images: Now he can read, and it carries him away, then back home. Ruzzier pays a sneaky tribute to the power of words and pictures to work together - and apart. The brilliant endpapers are gibberish at the front, then the plot of the story at the back. SURF'S UP By Kwame Alexander. Illustrated by Daniel Miyares. 30 pp. NorthSouth. $17.95. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) The Newbery winner Alexander ("The Crossover") and the enchanting, versatile Miyares ("Float") playfully topple the "reluctant reader" idea. "You'd rather read a book than go to the beach?" a green frog with a surfboard says to an orange one buried in a book. Well, why choose? The book - about "a man looking for a whale," hint, hint - comes along on their scooter. The orange frog throws out tidbits of the story, and his friend gets hooked too: He dives in while the other catches a wave. WANTED! RALFY RABBIT, BOOK BURGLAR Written and illustrated by Emily Mackenzie. 32 pp. Bloomsbury. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) Where have you gone, Peter Rabbit? This bunny is heavily into books - so much so that he starts sneaking into people's bedrooms and making off with the goods. He meets his match in a book-loving boy named Arthur, who sets a trap and catches Ralfy in the act. He gets away, but he's busted by Officer Puddle, who asks Arthur to identify him in a bunny lineup. The silliness is infectious, with Mackenzie's adorable, up-to-date art paying not a lick of homage to Beatrix Potter. A BIG SURPRISE FOR LITTLE CARD By Charise Mericle Harper. Illustrated by Anna Raff. 40 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) Not much in life holds the mystique of a child's first library card, and this book celebrates that lovely milestone. In Harper's clever story, Little Card, a cute sneaker-clad fellow with expressive eyebrows, is all set to be a birthday greeting, until he's sent instead to become the library card of a girl named Alex. Of course, they "liked each other instantly." He adjusts to the quiet, and as the library's wonders are revealed, it becomes clear that even if it's not a birthday party, the place has something to offer every day. MOM, DAD, OUR BOOKS, AND ME By Danielle Marcotte. Illustrated by Josée Bisaillon. 32 pp. Owlkids. $16.95. (Picture book; ages 4 to 8) Gorgeous and sophisticated, this book doesn't just preach about the importance of reading - it shows a world in which reading is all around, woven into life in many interesting ways. A fisherman "reads the sky"; a doctor "reads a thermometer." And the little boy who narrates, a proud new reader, revels in his new solidarity with his parents, relatives and neighbors, who like to be immersed in words. Bisaillon's art strikes just the right readerly tone, somehow both moody and cheerful. ONLINE An expanded visual presentation of this week's column at nytimes.com/books.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [June 3, 2016]
Review by Booklist Review
Newbery medalist Alexander introduces Bro (the green frog surfer) and Dude (the red frog reader). You'd rather read a book than go to the beach? asks Bro. SHHHH! I'm almost done, replies Dude. The pair ride to the ocean; Dude reading, and Bro steering the scooter. Despite Bro's pretense of disinterest, he soon becomes curious about Dude's exciting tale of whale versus man, as Dude can't keep his enthusiasm to himself: he shouts things like Wowie Kazowie! and Whoa, Daddy-O! every time something happens. As Dude finishes the Totally Awesome Book! he is off to surf in the ocean, while Bro, desperate to hear the exciting conclusion, picks it up and stays on the sand. Bright and colorful page spreads illustrate the personalities of the active protagonists, as well as the action-packed scenes of Dude's book: the crazed captain, the embattled ship, the writhing whale, and the catastrophic conclusion. The simple text is in two colors, red and green, to match the two friends' conversations. A fun romp with a twist.--Gepson, Lolly Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
"You'd rather read a book than go to the beach?" A surfer frog named Dude can't believe that his fellow surfer frog Bro is sticking with a "boring" book instead of hanging 10. But after hearing Bro's running commentary on the book's Moby-Dick-esque plot, Dude gets just as carried away. "Batten down the hatches!" shouts Bro, who has cast himself as Ahab in the midst of a mighty storm. "Do what to the what?" asks Dude-but he's right there on board the ship, too. Alexander, the 2015 Newbery Medalist for The Crossover, starts off at full throttle and never lets up: almost every line of this all-dialogue story ends in an exclamation point, and the liberal use of bright, all-caps typography ratchets up the emotions even higher. But the real excitement is in Miyares's (Float) wondrously rollicking drawings. Working in saturated colors and boldly graphic textures, he sends these big-eyed, freaked-out frogs hurtling (often literally) between fantasy and reality. It's a wild ride on the sea of imagination, and a rousing high-five to the power of reading. Ages 4-8. Illustrator's agency: Studio Goodwin Sturges. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Bro and Dude, two frog friends, have differing ideas about what makes for a fun day at the beach. Dude, dressed in swim trunks, surfboard in hand, is totally ready to catch some waves. Bro, meanwhile, has his head buried in a book (Moby-Dick) and wants to keep reading. Despite his claim that "books are boring," Dude finds himself increasingly interested in the story about a man looking for a whale. As the characters make their way to the seashore, Bro reads aloud and the illustrations transform to showcase the action of Melville's classic tale, cleverly substituting Bro the frog in the place of Captain Ahab. Pirate lingo ("Batten down the hatches!") and surfer slang ("Cowabunga!") enliven the story and will have young listeners giggling. Miyares's digitally created illustrations are expressive and full of energy and motion-a perfect complement to Alexander's simple yet buoyant text. VERDICT A joyful and humor-filled ode to the magic of imagination and reading.-Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal © Copyright 2015. 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
Alexander follows up his poignant 2015 Newbery-winning middle-grade verse novel The Crossover (rev. 5/14) witha picture book starring two frogs, one a surfer dude, the other a bookworm. SURFS UP, BRO! calls the first frog to his bud. Not yet, Dude, responds the other, absorbed in his reading. While Dude and Bro (still with nose in book) make their way to the beach, Bro reveals some tantalizing plot points from Moby-Dick that slowly pique skeptical Dudes interest. Highly pigmented art with rich colors and texture makes this beach day burst off the page -- and Bros story bursts from its pages as well, as Miyaress illustrations blur more and more of Dude and Bros day into the plot of Moby-Dick. In a climactic scene, we see a full-bleed double-page spread showing both frogs trying to manage the storm-tossed ship (BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES! says Bro. Do what to the what? replies Dude). After finishing the book, Bro heads straight for the water to catch some waves, revealing no spoilers to his now-curious friend. Surfing forgotten, Dude snaps up the abandoned volume to find out for himself what happens -- and the art begins to blur reality once more, this time with Dude as ships captain. With their strategic use of color and line, the illustrations work well with Alexanders snappy, spare text (all in dialogue) to create a high-energy tribute to the power of a good book. julie roach (c) Copyright 2016. 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 sunny day near the ocean means different kinds of excitement for frog friends Bro and Dude. Dude peeks into the window: "SURF'S UP, BRO!" But Bro is too immersed in a book to respond ("You'd rather read a book than go to the beach?" Dude asks incredulously), so Dude pops pal and surfboard onto the back of his push scooter. On the way, Bro is still reading: "WOWIE KAZOWIE!" The story ("about a man looking for a whale") begins to unfold around them both. The looming whale, a stormy sea, a ship with a frog sporting a bicorn hat at the helm, and the mast cracking in two are suddenly right at hand. Bro's thrilled enthusiasm and punchy exclamations as he finishes the book finally elicit Dude's eager questions: "Did they catch the whale? Who got the gold?" and Bro's sly response, "Not telling." Miyares' edge-to-edge illustrations, full of motion, capture in these frog characters a friendship that offers space to be oneself, with a nice reversal at the end: Dude has his nose in the book ("WHOA, DADDY-O"), and Bro catches a wave ("COWABUNGA!"). Newbery winner (The Crossover, 2014) Alexander's humorous, tautly poetic dialogue between friends begs to be read aloud to small listeners or by new readers, and these frogs have cultural punch that many plain-vanilla animal characters lack. The nod to Moby-Dick is a bonus. A warmhearted tribute to reading. (Picture book. 4-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
