Miss Spider's New Car

Miss Spider's New Car is carried almost entirely by David Kirk's illustrations — jewel-toned oil paintings rendered with extraordinary attention to light, perspective, and the charming detail of a world built from shells, seed pods, and matchboxes. Publishers Weekly singled out the 'lavish, enthusiastic pictures' for good reason; they're the main event. The story itself is gentle and sweet: fussy Holley test-drives a parade of whimsical vehicles before arranging to deliver his wife's original favorite as a surprise. It's a small, warm moral about thoughtfulness and putting a loved one first. The honest caveat is that the text is minimal — this is a short read-aloud — and the story is thin enough that the book lives or dies on how much a child loves the artwork and the characters. Fans of the Noggin/Nick Jr. series will find it entirely satisfying.