Review by Booklist Review
Yoon's consummate hero Penguin returns in this story on the importance of Christmas cheer. It's Christmas Eve, and Penguin's friend Pumpkin is lamenting their lack of a real Christmas tree. There may be no evergreens at home, but Penguin knows what to do. He and his crew pack up their Christmas presents and decorations and leave home to find Pinecone (first seen in Penguin and Pinecone, 2012), who has grown into a beautiful evergreen. With the decorations and presents on display, the penguins settle down to sleep, dreaming of their Christmas wishes. But disaster strikes when a late-night storm pulls a full-on Grinch, blowing away all the decorations and presents, and it's up to Penguin to make sure the spirit of Christmas stays strong, even without all its trappings. Yoon's digital illustrations of Penguin and his pals are as heartwarming as ever, and this is as nondenominational as a Christmas story can get. Penguin's good-hearted earnestness has won him plenty of admirers, and this holiday tale won't turn them away.--Reagan, Maggie Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Spending time with friends and loved ones is a big part of what makes the holidays special; when one of those friends is a pine tree, so much the better. This fifth Penguin picture book sees the return of Pinecone, whom Penguin befriended in his first picture book in 2012. Now fully grown, Pinecone becomes the perfect Christmas tree for Penguin, Pumpkin, and their fellow penguins, but after a storm blows away the ornaments on the tree and the presents underneath it, Penguin uses a bit of ingenuity to create replacement gifts (sticks, it turns out, make great knitting needles, drumsticks, and fishing rods). With their rough black outlines and bright colors, Yoon's digital graphics again create a cozy polar environment for the story, which emphasizes creativity, togetherness, and generosity as key elements for a memorable Christmas. Up to age 3. Agent: Jamie Weiss Chilton, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-In the title character's sixth adventure, he leads his family from their icy home to the heart of the forest, where Pinecone (introduced in the first book) has grown into a tall tree-perfect for Christmas adornments. After a pleasant trimming party, all go to sleep with heads full of wishes. But during the night, a blizzard wreaks havoc. In the morning, not only are all the decorations gone but so are the presents. Grandpa reminds everyone that the true joy of Christmas is being with loved ones, but Penguin goes off into the snow and returns with creative gifts to fulfill each wish but his own. His wish had been to share Christmas with the whole forest. As the sun melts the snow, the ornaments are discovered on the surrounding trees. Old and new friends gather at nightfall to see the beautiful array, making Penguin's wish come true after all. VERDICT The noncommercial message and charmingly illustrated characters will surely delight fans of this picture book series.-Linda Israelson, Los Angeles Public Library © Copyright 2016. 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
In this delightful sixth story, Penguin's family visits Pinecone on Christmas Eve. After they all decorate the tree (still wearing the hand-knit scarf from Penguin and Pinecone), a blizzard hides everything overnight. Penguin improvises perfect presents for everyone and gets his wish when the forest animals share a magical Christmas with them. Yoon's sweet, thick-lined Photoshop illustrations will melt any snow-covered heart (or tree). (c) Copyright 2017. 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
Cheerful little Penguin continues to expand his world with a story about celebrating Christmas with friends and family. On Christmas Eve, Penguin, little brother Pumpkin, friend Bootsy, and Grandpa pack up ornaments, Christmas lights, and presents and set out in search of a Christmas tree. They decorate Penguins first pal, Pinecone, as their tree, but during the night a blizzard blows everything away. Penguin improvises presents from sticks, and the group has a fine Christmas day. By nighttime, they realize the decorations and presents are stuck in nearby trees in the forest, and other animals arrive for a larger celebration with multiple Christmas trees. Yoons distinctive illustrations use simple shapes, bold colors, and thick, black outlines to delineate the characters against snowy backgrounds. Each penguin has a distinguishing characteristic (hat, scarf, or hair bow) to help children keep the characters straight. The spread with many trees sharing the decorations is a little hard to decode at first, as it is illustrated from an overhead perspective, and its hard to tell that the green circles with white streaks are evergreen trees with snow on the branches. But understanding different perspectives is part of visual literacy, and the final spread shows the trees from a more conventional side view. Grandpas touching words about the meaning of Christmas and Penguins sweet presents of sticks add depth to this unassuming but satisfying story. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
