Kristine A. Lombardi

Lovey is a happy little bunny, full of love for the entire world and everything in it. When, in the course of her make-believe games, she ruins her mother's beautiful new dress, she becomes afraid: will Mama still love her? Fortunately for our leporine heroine, Mama is all forgiveness, especially when her little bunny finds a way to "repair" the damage...

Although Lovey Bunny is author/artist Kristine A. Lombardi's debut picture-book, it is the second that I have read from her, following upon show more the subsequent Mr. Biddles. In some ways, this is a traditional reassurance story, one in which the young protagonist discovers that she is loved, no matter what. It's sweet enough, and the artwork is cute, but I found I had trouble suspending my disbelief, when it came to Mama Bunny's almost saintly forgiveness of Lovey's destruction of her dress. Of course parents continue to love their children when they do wrong, but they usually also set boundaries and enforce consequences. Don't they...? I wasn't too impressed with this one, although I did give it an extra half star for the cute illustrations. show less

Billy was a grumpy boy. When his mother took him to the pet shelter to find an animal companion, he was not at all impressed with the many cheerful dogs and cuddly cats. Then he found some grumpy pets at the back, and met a dog every bit as grouchy and despondent as himself. The rest, as they say, was history...

An engaging picture-book examination of finding the perfect animal companion, The Grumpy Pets highlights the fact that, much like people, not every animal has an upbeat personality. show more Those animals - the eponymous 'grumpy pets' - also need a home, just as grumpy children need their companionship. Recommended to young grouches, and to anyone looking for children's stories about shelter animals, and how important it is to give all of them (even the less-than-cute ones) a home. show less

A solitary feline inventor named Mr. Biddles finds that everything is more enjoyable, from his work in his lab to his evening movie-watching, when Hobson the lobster shows up on his doorstep one day and moves in. But when Hobson becomes homesick, and Mr. Biddles invents a conveyance to get him home, it looks like the end of their friendship...

A sweet but fairly unremarkable tale of friendship is paired with intensely inventive mixed media illustrations in Mr. Biddles, author/artist Kristine show more A. Lombardi's third picture-book. Although the story was engaging enough, it was the artwork that was the real standout here for me. The visuals are really interesting, with the use of pencil, gouache, various found objects, and different papers. Recommended to young would-be inventors, and to anyone looking for children's stories about unlikely friendships. show less

An adorable cat called Crouton waits at the animal shelter to adopt just the right person, then make her feel welcome.

Adorable! A perfect read-aloud. The page with Crouton sleeping in different places (the sink, a potted plant, on the piano keyboard) while the girl is at school got giggles.

See also: The Kitten Story by Emily Jenkins