Review by New York Times Review
It's time for school, and a boy can't locate his socks, ball, book and so on. (Sound familiar?) This board book hits its mark wonderfully by turning that daily parenting quagmire into a graphically appealing seek-and-find adventure, with a clever lesson in colors thrown in. Light ("Swap!"), a master of pen and ink, adds one colored object to his retro-bold black lines on every page, asking his audience to track it down. On the last page the school bus arrives - yikes! - before the boy's got hold of his lunchbox. Mom to the rescue. DON'T GO TO SCHOOL! By Máire Zepf. Illustrated by Tarsila Krüse. 40 pp. Sterling. $14.95. (Picture book; ages 3 - 6) In this gentle, funny debut tale of helicopter parenting taken to its logical extreme, Benno, a dapper young bear, is excited about his first day of school, but Mom is having a tough time. Is that scenario a stab at reverse psychology aimed to help quell kids' fear, or a social comment aimed at hoverers? Well, both. "Stay here with me, Benno!" she cries, then tries to get him to leave the playground because "I don't know anyone here!" Krüse's art, in bear-friendly shades of honey and moss, is as warm and balanced as Zepf's story. THE TEACHER'S PET ByAnica Mrose Rissi. Illustrated byZachariah OHora. 32 pp. Disney-Hyperion. $17.99. (Picture book; ages 3 - 6) The teacher in this amusing classroom story is named, ominously, Mr. Stricter, but he's as tenderhearted as they come - which is a big problem when the class tadpole, Bruno, turns out to be a hippo. As Bruno wreaks havoc, Mr. Stricter showers him with praise. The children must get their teacher to wise up and show Bruno the door. Rissi (the "Anna, Banana" books), with her edge-of-grossout humor, and OHora ("Horrible Bear!"), with his giant-headed, candy-colored people, have over-the-top sensibilities that mesh fantastically. TWINDERGARTEN Written by Nikki Ehrlich. Illustrated by Zoey Abbott. 32 pp. Harper. $15.99. (Picture book; ages 4 - 6) For the ever-growing number of school-age twins, kindergarten is not just the start of elementary school, but the first real separation from their siblings. This reassuring debut feels up-to-date as it follows biracial twins named Dax and Zoe, used to going together "like peanut butter and jelly." They zig and zag through believable emotional reactions to being in different classrooms on their first day of school. With calm white space and feathery but orderly lines, Abbott's lovely colored-pencil art makes the schoolday seem like a breeze. ZOMBELINA SCHOOL DAYS By Kristýn Crow. Illustrated by Molly Idle. 32 pp. Bloomsbury. $16.99. (Picture book; ages 4 - 8) Zombie humor seems like a good match for first-day jitters. Witness a little green schoolgirl called Zombelina. The eager little undead dancer is back for her third book, and she waltzes right into her classroom ready for some clever rhyming action. She raises her hand, but it falls to the floor; she really puts her nose in a book. But she's in better shape than a shy, blue ghoul named Morty, whom she reaches out to help. The Caldecott Honor-winning Idle's ("Flora and the Flamingo") art seems to glide and dance mischievously across the pages. ONLINE An expanded visual presentation of this week's column is at nytimes.com/books.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [August 27, 2017]
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Crow and Idle's dance-loving, undead heroine helps a ghostly new student adjust to the classroom in her third outing. Zombelina can't wait to show off her best moves during show and tell, but although her routine falls apart (as does her body, with limbs popping off and eyeballs rolling away) she still encourages a nervous Morty to sing his heart out: "He nods and he quivers, then sings out of tune./ It's awesome! Like werewolves that howl at the moon!" Idle's balletic, curving lines are put to excellent use in this dance-themed story, which balances its sappier moments with mischievous, gross-out ones. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Kendra Marcus, Bookstop Literary. Illustrator's agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Zombelina is looking forward to show-and-tell at school. She loves to dance, as she demonstrates on the bus, and plans to share her skills with her class. Naturally being a zombie means that she has difficulty holding things together. Zombelina and her best friend, Lizzie (human) gladly welcome Morty, a new student who is rather blue (literally) to their twosome after neither Zombelina's nor his talent sharing goes particularly well. Zombelina falls apart (she is a zombie after all) but still finds the confidence to encourage Morty. After playing together at recess, Zombelina is inspired to invite everyone to a party at her house where she is finally able to share her dance prowess. The themes of inclusion and welcoming differences shines through in such a clever way that readers almost won't notice it. Zombelina delights with her confidence and acceptance of herself as well as her persistence. VERDICT This is a school story that could easily double as a Halloween selection. A first purchase wherever zombies are popular.-Heidi Grange, Summit Elementary School, Smithfield, UT © Copyright 2017. 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 Kirkus Book Review
A student who is a zombie has more difficulty than most keeping it together at school, but her relationship skills are never in any doubt. Math, grammar, spelling, and reading precede the much-anticipated show-and-tell (Zombelina's "hip-hop's to DIE for!"), and by then, readers will see where the tale might be going, as Zombelina loses the hand she raises to answer a question, and she puts her nose in her book. Literally. Sure enough, Zombelina and her dance both fall apart. But though the green-skinned girl is upset, it doesn't keep her from building the nervous ghost Morty up for his turn on his first day in a new school. After all, what could be worse than Zombelina's performance? After that, she, Morty, and her friend Lizzie (a living white girl) are fast friends. The tale ends with a dance party at Zombelina's house after her classmates request dance lessons. Crow's verses have the hip-hop rhythm of rap, though some will take some practice to read aloud smoothly. Idle's Prismacolor-pencil illustrations portray Zombelina as a blonde with a style all her own. Zigzags and hash marks make it look as though her body parts are stitched together. Aside from the phantasmagoric, blue Morty, the rest of the class has a normal range of diverse skin tones. This zombie may not be able to keep her body together, but she can sure keep her head in delicate situations and be a good friend. (Picture book. 5-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
