Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2-Life at the zoo takes a new turn for Herman the tiger when a tiny egg falls, hitting him on the head as he's nurturing a bad mood. Curious, he wraps the egg in his soft tail and falls asleep. Herman knows a bit about eggs and birds, having chatted with ducks who sometimes swim in his moat. He's soon a caring parent for the small scrawny bird that hatches. Brönner creates a gently comic situation and characters as readers follow an expressive Herman and his young tiger bird's early life lessons. Anxious to leave the nest and get out into the world, little bird receives roaring instruction. "First stand with your legs apart, fluff up your neck feathers, and pull your eyebrows together so you look really nasty." Herman comes to regret assuring the bird that he's like a little tiger when his protégé has a close, brash encounter with a big gray pelican. Children will surely chuckle over the youngster's boastful belief that his loud "Tweeeet!" scared off the big bird. As the two curl up after an exciting day, Herman knows that he has more teaching to do tomorrow. VERDICT A satisfying and humorous read-aloud for preschool groups and a good bedtime story, too.-Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston © Copyright 2018. 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
When an egg falls on tiger Herman's head, he builds a nest for it in his zoo enclosure. After it hatches, Herman teaches his "little tiger bird" how to be tough--an attribute that the bird employs when he squares off against a much-bigger pelican. This dynamically illustrated tale about the malleability of identity ends anticlimactically, but the book's endearing stars could support a sequel. (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 morose tiger, frustrated by life in an enclosure, finds renewed purpose when a turquoise egg falls into his care.Herman, the tiger, takes to paternity quickly, "very carefullywrapp[ing] his soft, furry tail around the egg." Hunched and focused, he weaves a nest from straw and "the softest hairs from his chest." Children will giggle at the hulking tiger's loving, ludicrous posture as he stands on two feet, willing dexterity into his cumbersome paws and claws, bent in concentration. Matte watercolors (buttercup yellows, teal greens, and fuchsia reds) delight as well, making joyous striations as branches, bark, water, ground, leaves, fur. Vivid, multidirectional, and abundant, the cheerful clash of colors captures the teeming life and sound inside the animal enclosure. Creatures peer, gawk, and interject throughout, making readers aware of the inescapable closeness of captivity. In the background of one spread, a pale caretaker cleans up a pile of animal bones using a broom and wheelbarrowa small, grim reminder that sadness and death live here too. Young life and adoptive love, thankfully, cast a golden light across the pages of this endearing book from the moment the egg cracks. The hatchling emerges (a yellow-and-black pompom with enormous black eyes on two long stick legs), and Herman sees his "little tiger bird." Soon, the baby bird learns to roar.Exuberant pictures express parental love, which makes species, gender, size, biology, and even the bars of an enclosure irrelevant. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
