Fox Is Coming!

Gr 1-5–Eight baby chicks are chased around the farm by a confident, blue-eyed fox intent on capturing them. Kulka’s talent is evident everywhere in these masterfully rendered and thoughtfully composed illustrations that work well with playful, skillful metered rhyming text to build the tension and suspense familiar to Patterson’s massive following of older readers. The watercolor and digital illustrations will appeal to cartoon fans while also attracting those who enjoy a more sophisticated stylized use of texture, color, shadow, and perspective to give depth and energy to the vibrant and visual storytelling. The narration volleys perspective back and forth between anthropomorphized Fox’s individual view and the collective and vulnerable chicks while the fast-paced story moves along; there is delight to be had as expectations mount and the urgency of Fox closing in on his quarry intensifies. Rhyme and meter fall away elegantly as the narrative tension breaks and the absolute joy of the chase fully enters the picture.