PRAISE

“Insect friends find ways of coping with each other's differences. As with Llenas' The Color Monster (2018), the magnificent art will prove a [strong] draw . . . Gatefolds, inset booklets, immense multilayered pop-ups that seem to burst up as they open, and pull tabs that create big, broad movements enhance illustrations created from layers and assemblages of large and small cut-paper bits, all further energized with transparent colors and added scribbly lines. Though Ralph and Rita have buglike attributes, they look like humans (both white) in costumes. Younger audiences will likely pay more attention to the tabs and pop-ups than the theme, but both pals are drawn with large, expressive faces that make it easy to track the ins and outs of their close, if occasionally stressed, relationship. The art pops—and pops up.” —Kirkus -