Zombelina School Days

by Kristyn Crow, Molly Idle (Illustrator)

Overview

Zombelina loves to dance, and going to school is just as fun! She leaps on the bus and twirls down the aisle. In class she raises her hand high in the air, even if sometimes it falls under her chair.

When it's time for show-and-tell, Zombelina can't wait to share her hip-hop moves, but a new student named Morty has his own case of stage fright . . . something Zombelina knows how to fix. She has the perfect idea to make Morty feel welcome: a big rockin' dance party!

After all, friends who dance together, stay together!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681194738
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	06/06/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	7 MB
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

KRISTYN CROW loves to use rhythm, rhyme, and repetition to make reading snappy and fun. Her first book, Cool Daddy Rat, received starred reviews and was named a Blue Ribbon Book by the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. Other titles include Bedtime at the Swamp, The Middle-Child Blues, and Skeleton Cat. Kristyn enjoys visiting elementary schools, where she directs eager young readers in a "swamp rhythm symphony" using a variety of percussion instruments. Kristyn is the mother of seven wonderfully creative children, and is married to a policeman, who doubles as a mad scientist/inventor. She lives in Layton, Utah.
www.kristyncrow.com

MOLLY IDLE is the Caldecott-Honor winning author and illustrator of Flora and the Flamingo and Flora and the Penguin, as well as Tea Rex and Camp Rex. She is also the illustrator of the Zombelina books. Molly worked at DreamWorks Feature Animation Studios for five years before turning to book illustration full-time. When not making mischief with her boys or watching old Technicolor musicals, she can be found at her desk scribbling away, with a pencil in one hand and a cup of espresso in the other. She now lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with her family and two snuggly cats.
www.idleillustration.com
@MollyIdle
KRISTYN CROW loves to use rhythm, rhyme, and repetition to make reading snappy and fun. Her first book, Cool Daddy Rat, received starred reviews and was named a Blue Ribbon Book by the Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. Other titles include Bedtime at the Swamp, The Middle-Child Blues, and Skeleton Cat. Kristyn enjoys visiting elementary schools, where she directs eager young readers in a "swamp rhythm symphony" using a variety of percussion instruments. Kristyn is the mother of seven wonderfully creative children, and is married to a policeman, who doubles as a mad scientist/inventor. She lives in Layton, Utah.
www.kristyncrow.com
MOLLY IDLE is the Caldecott-Honor winning author and illustrator of Flora and the Flamingo and Flora and the Penguin, as well as Tea Rex and Camp Rex. She is also the illustrator of the Zombelina books. Molly worked at DreamWorks Feature Animation Studios for five years before turning to book illustration full-time. When not making mischief with her boys or watching old Technicolor musicals, she can be found at her desk scribbling away, with a pencil in one hand and a cup of espresso in the other. She now lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with her family and two snuggly cats.
www.idleillustration.com
@MollyIdle

Editorial Reviews

Zombie humor seems like a good match for first-day jitters…The Caldecott Honor-winning Idle's…art seems to glide and dance mischievously across the pages.

The New York Times Book Review - Maria Russo

05/15/2017
Crow and Idle’s dance-loving, undead heroine helps a ghostly new student adjust to the classroom in her third outing. Zombelina can’t wait to show off her best moves during show and tell, but although her routine falls apart (as does her body, with limbs popping off and eyeballs rolling away) she still encourages a nervous Morty to sing his heart out: “He nods and he quivers, then sings out of tune./ It’s awesome! Like werewolves that howl at the moon!” Idle’s balletic, curving lines are put to excellent use in this dance-themed story, which balances its sappier moments with mischievous, gross-out ones. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Kendra Marcus, Bookstop Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Steven Malk, Writers House. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"A good match for first-day jitters. . . . Caldecott Honor-winning Idle’s art seems to glide and dance mischievously across the pages." - The New York Times

"Themes of inclusion and welcoming differences shines through . . . Zombelina delights with her confidence and acceptance of herself as well as her persistence." - School Library Journal

"This zombie may not be able to keep her body together, but she can sure keep her head in delicate situations and be a good friend." - Kirkus Reviews

"Idle’s balletic, curving lines are put to excellent use in this dance-themed story." - Publishers Weekly

"Fans of both paranormal characters and ballet will like this." - Kirkus Reviews on ZOMBELINA DANCES THE NUTCRACKER

"Zombelina is a wonderful dancer, but it’s really Idle who’s superb—few others could make running jokes about detached limbs look this graceful. Crow’s rhymes offer a similar blend of playfulness and gross-out humor." - Publishers Weekly on ZOMBELINA DANCES THE NUTCRACKER

"Spook lovers will grab the book . . . The strength of the book is the handling of overcoming stage fright." - Library Media Connection on ZOMBELINA

"Crow’s rhyming text is ready-made for reading aloud. Idle’s colored-pencil illustrations are bursting with details, facial expressions, wonderfully slightly spooky touches, and when appropriate, love. An unusually well-done mix of Halloween, dance, and family that’s sure to please many youngsters." - School Library Journal on ZOMBELINA

"If Dr. Frankenstein, Tim Burton, or Charles Addams had tried to create a picture-book protagonist, it might have been Zombelina . . . An especially funny horror story with a warm message in its unbeating heart." - Booklist on ZOMBELINA

From the Publisher

08/01/2017
K-Gr 2—Zombelina is looking forward to show-and-tell at school. She loves to dance, as she demonstrates on the bus, and plans to share her skills with her class. Naturally being a zombie means that she has difficulty holding things together. Zombelina and her best friend, Lizzie (human) gladly welcome Morty, a new student who is rather blue (literally) to their twosome after neither Zombelina's nor his talent sharing goes particularly well. Zombelina falls apart (she is a zombie after all) but still finds the confidence to encourage Morty. After playing together at recess, Zombelina is inspired to invite everyone to a party at her house where she is finally able to share her dance prowess. The themes of inclusion and welcoming differences shines through in such a clever way that readers almost won't notice it. Zombelina delights with her confidence and acceptance of herself as well as her persistence. VERDICT This is a school story that could easily double as a Halloween selection. A first purchase wherever zombies are popular.—Heidi Grange, Summit Elementary School, Smithfield, UT

School Library Journal

2017-05-15
A student who is a zombie has more difficulty than most keeping it together at school, but her relationship skills are never in any doubt. Math, grammar, spelling, and reading precede the much-anticipated show-and-tell (Zombelina's "hip-hop's to DIE for!"), and by then, readers will see where the tale might be going, as Zombelina loses the hand she raises to answer a question, and she puts her nose in her book. Literally. Sure enough, Zombelina and her dance both fall apart. But though the green-skinned girl is upset, it doesn't keep her from building the nervous ghost Morty up for his turn on his first day in a new school. After all, what could be worse than Zombelina's performance? After that, she, Morty, and her friend Lizzie (a living white girl) are fast friends. The tale ends with a dance party at Zombelina's house after her classmates request dance lessons. Crow's verses have the hip-hop rhythm of rap, though some will take some practice to read aloud smoothly. Idle's Prismacolor-pencil illustrations portray Zombelina as a blonde with a style all her own. Zigzags and hash marks make it look as though her body parts are stitched together. Aside from the phantasmagoric, blue Morty, the rest of the class has a normal range of diverse skin tones. This zombie may not be able to keep her body together, but she can sure keep her head in delicate situations and be a good friend. (Picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews