Jeremy Tankard (1)

Bird gets "bonked" on the head in this follow-up to Tankard's Grumpy Bird, and spends most of the rest of the book being inconsolable. A kiss from Raccoon, a hug from Rabbit, a cookie from Beaver, and a band-aid from Fox seem to have no effect on his weeping. What does? Imitation, of course...

All children have experienced a fall, a blow, or some other kind of injury, and will be able to identify with Bird, just as their parents will recognize his instinctive playing for sympathy. As one show more reviewer has noted, Bird is a bit of an "avian prima donna," but his adventures are relatable and amusing, for all that, and emphasize the importance of friendship. Tankard's simple, brightly colored illustrations enhance the sense of fun, and will keep young readers' attention. All in all, Boo Hoo Bird is a worthy follow-up to the first! show less

"When Bird woke up, he was grumpy. He was too grumpy to eat. He was too grumpy to play. In fact, he was too grumpy to fly. 'Looks like I'm walking today,' said Bird." And walk he does, encountering a succession of friends, each of whom join him on his stroll. Will Bird stay grumpy, despite his many cheerful followers, or will his sense of fun assert itself...?

Jeremy's Tankard's debut picture-book, Grumpy Bird offers an entertaining look at an experience we have all had, at one time or show more another. Sometimes we're grumpy for no good reason, and our mood has to run its course. I appreciated the fact that Bird's friends didn't try to cheer him up, that they simply accompanied him on his journey. That made the conclusion, in which Bird rediscovers his will to fly, all the more satisfying. The bright illustrations are eye-catching, and will hold young readers' attention. All in all, I found this an appealing little book, and intend to seek out the next - Boo Hoo Bird. show less

Yorick, the lamented skull in Shakespeare's Hamlet, is dug from the ground in the present day by a passing dog and walks around scaring people with his iambic pentameter and skeletal form. Did we need a kid's book scripted entirely in iambic pentameter? Wasn't it bad enough when we had to read Stan Lee's original Thor comic book where he doths, haths, and -eths everything?

Morality police: Yorick steals without consequence.

Quibble police: The author says he decided that Yorick and Hamlet were show more childhood friends because Shakespeare "doesn't make it clear whether Yorick is a grown-up or not." This despite Hamlet referring to Yorick as a "man," who "hath borne me on his back a thousand times" until his death 23 years previous to the graveyard scene, when a 30-year-old Hamlet would have been seven (or even younger if you care to dispute Hamlet's age). Yorick was the king's court jester, so it seems highly unlikely he was a child peer of Hamlet's. show less

When I first began reading this book, I thought it a bit weird, but by the end I was in love.

This tale is a charming spoof for younger readers based on a Shakespeare work.

The father-daughter team of Jeremy and Hermione Tankard based the book on a doodle (the afterword is a must read explaining this), of a dog threatening to gobble the leg bones of an upset skeleton he just unearthed.
This is something Jeremy had been drawing, in one form or another, since he was 7 years old. After years of show more trying and failing to get the sketches to work as a picture book, Jeremy passed the manuscript off to his daughter, 15 at the time, who rewrote it in Shakespearean verse and produced the script for what would become this fun, endearing graphic novel.

“Poor Yorick” wants just two things: a sausage and a friend to share it with. He easily gets a hot dog from a hot dog vendor’s cart but the friendship part is hard to find. Yorick is quite innocent, oblivious and goofy as he and Bones search for a human to play with. Wearing a pair of red pants to cover his nakedness, Yorick doesn’t understand that he is the terrifying talking skeleton from whom everyone is running. When he finally sees his reflection, he utters a variation of Shylock’s famous line from “The Merchant of Venice,” deftly changed to suit his “sorry bones”: “’Tis sure that if you prick me, I’ll bleed not.

I think young readers will enjoy the rhythm which is kind of like like a heart that pumps “ba DUM” five times a line. Yorick’s words may sound foreign, but “forsooth” and “alack” are the hardest ones you’ll find. In the final act, when Yorick realizes the friend for whom he’s been looking ever since he was unearthed, is the dog who’s been nipping at his heels all along, his exclamation, “Verily, the air doth cool mine face!” shouted as he throws his own skull for his new pal to fetch.
This one is a winner through the precious story and terribly cute illustrations. show less