(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. In this comical and imaginative cautionary tale, originally published in Argentina, young Milo receives a present: RO-BO, a multipurpose robot with a propeller, a sweet smile, and one red-rimmed eye. Instantly smitten, Milo learns that his new toy can project video games, fly, and even teach “bad words.” Soon the boy is spending every moment with RO-BO, ­refusing to bathe and losing sleep. Johnson deftly employs ­comic-book-style panels, with dialogue in speech bubbles, to show the many activities they enjoy as well as Milo’s increasing exhaustion. When Milo’s concerned mom sends him outside, urging him to make (human) friends, he meets three children attempting to construct a cardboard spaceship. Milo joins them, and, with a little help from RO-BO, they soar into the cosmos on their DIY creation. Johnson fills each spread with colors that shimmer and shine, especially after the adventurers land on a friendly planet. She emphasizes warm tones and round shapes in her mixed-media illustrations, comforting readers even when things be-come perilous. Before they can return home, RO-BO needs recharging, but how? Kinetic energy saves the day. The clever ending includes a RO-BO instructional manual.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2025

(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. A typical day on the savanna inspires Kibo, a rhinoceros, to write a book. "He wrote about the red sky of the savanna, the silhouettes of the birds, the buzz of the bugs." Naki the crane reads over Kibo's shoulder and is so moved that she sews up his pages between yellow covers and then flies the bound copy over the sea and drops it in a faraway city. The book then travels from a lion to a rabbit to a hen, ultimately winding up with Nanuk, a North Pole polar bear. ­Johnson's folk-art style, in warm shades of blue, yellow, and orange, gives the illustrations a retro vibe that suits the DIY ethos of Kibo's creation and the way it moves through the world. The flora and fauna that surround Kibo when he's writing recur whenever his story finds a new reader, giving a visual sense of how books allow thoughts and ideas to travel from one mind to another. Satisfying in itself, this book will also find a happy home in classrooms and serve as a springboard for young bookmakers' creative endeavors.

Reviewer: Adrienne L. Pettinelli | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(3) PS In this wordless, oversize picture book, a sleeping child's dream comes to life in sweeping, intricate full-spread illustrations. Cityscapes give way to a wilderness when animal characters from the child's bedtime story head out on a Sendak-reminiscent wild rumpus; from the tantalizing open windows to a sky full of twinkling stars and a forest lush with curling plants, this Italian import is a visual delight.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(4) PS The young narrator repeats vivid descriptions a bear (who's now in a zoo) gives her about his original "vast and wondrous" home. Most of the book feels fantastical and whimsical and the respect-animals message is sweet, but the vague ending (the girl wordlessly releases her pet bird) may confuse young kids. The subdued graphite drawings possess a dreamlike quality.

Reviewer: Miriam Steinberg-Egeth