Bold and stirring.
Understand your story and listen to others’.
An unseen narrator muses on how special everyone is through a series of connected passages that will leave readers contemplating their places in the world. Readers are reminded that they are many things: someone’s child, an animal, a body of water (mostly), and much more. The text is informative and inspirational: “You are a sponge. You are constantly soaking up new information. You are a student of the world. You learn by trying new things. You absorb everything you see, hear, taste, smell, and touch.” As the declarations continue, a diverse group of children with different skin tones, hair textures, and physical abilities explore and interact with their world and with each other. Accompanied by appealing digital illustrations that have an intimate, collagelike feel, the story is a little nonfiction (with a few facts about the solar system, water, and more sprinkled in) and a lot pep talk and will hopefully inspire young readers and caregivers alike to remember that we are all unique and that we each contain multitudes. The final message is perhaps the most profound: “You are a story. You are the author of your life. Every day is a blank page waiting for you to fill it. Make your story funny. Make it an adventure. Tell your story to others. Then listen to theirs.” That final sentence is an important reminder for readers of all ages. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Bold and stirring. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4914-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Neal Porter/Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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