bookshelf

THE DRESS AND THE GIRL

Name: THE DRESS AND THE GIRL
Author: Camille Andros
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3161-7

by Camille Andros ; illustrated by Julie Morstad ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 7, 2018

A gentle tale well-suited for family-history and creative-writing units.

bookshelf

Around the turn of the last century, a Greek village girl wears her beloved red dress as she goes about her daily life only to be separated from it when the family emigrates.

The child and her dress lead a seemingly idyllic, nature-filled life under blue skies, among whitewashed buildings, but they long for adventure. For unexplained reasons, the family boards a ship, where girl and dress play and go to school as before, details that subtly convey the length of the passage. Upon arrival at Ellis Island, the family is separated from the trunk in which the dress is now packed. The trunk, unclaimed, circles the globe in search of its rightful owners, eventually landing in a secondhand shop. Now grown, the girl spots her dress in the window and buys it for her own daughter. Morstad’s (House of Dreams, 2018, etc.) clean illustrations expertly evoke the era through a nostalgic color palette and the (unnamed) locations through carefully chosen details. The opening and closing spreads echo each other, reinforcing the theme of connection. Immigrant stories are perennially relevant, and the rarely seen 20th-century Greek setting is refreshing. However, the dress—while attributed human feelings—never generates enough emotion to create dramatic tension, and readers are not shown the impact on the family of starting a new life without most of their worldly possessions.

A gentle tale well-suited for family-history and creative-writing units. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-4197-3161-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Abrams

Review Posted Online: May 22, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BOY AND THE SEA
by Camille Andros ; illustrated by Amy June Bates

- BOOK REVIEW
FROM A SMALL SEED
by Camille Andros ; illustrated by Tessa Blackham

- BOOK REVIEW
CHARLOTTE THE SCIENTIST FINDS A CURE
by Camille Andros ; illustrated by Brianne Farley

bookshelf

THE WORLD NEEDS THE WONDER YOU SEE

by Joanna Gaines ; illustrated by Julianna Swaney ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 28, 2025

Handy advice for perpetually inquisitive children.

bookshelf

Interior decorator and TV personality Gaines invites readers to open their eyes and exercise their imaginations.

There’s a world to be explored out there—and only children can really take part. What does “looking for wonder” entail? Slowing down and looking up, around, and everywhere. At the outset, a group of eager, racially diverse young friends—including one who uses a wheelchair—are fully prepared for a grand adventure. They offer tips about how and where to look: Why, there’s a “grand parade” of marching ants! And, these kids add, perspective is key. A rainy day might signal gloom to some, but to those filled with wonder, showers bring “magic puddles for play”; a forest is “an enchanted world,” the ocean conceals “a spectacular city,” and the night sky boasts “extraordinary sights.” The takeaway: “Wonder is never in short supply.” It’s a robust, empowering message, as is the exhortation to “keep your mind open, and let curiosity guide the way.” Youngsters are also advised to share their discoveries. The upbeat narrative is delivered in clunky verse, but the colorful cartoonish illustrations brimming with activity and good cheer (including some adorable anthropomorphized animals in the backgrounds) make up for the textual lapses and should motivate readers to embark on their own “wonder explorations.”

Handy advice for perpetually inquisitive children. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Jan. 28, 2025

ISBN: 9781400247417

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Tommy Nelson

Review Posted Online: today

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORLD NEEDS WHO YOU WERE MADE TO BE
by Joanna Gaines ; illustrated by Julianna Swaney

bookshelf

ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

bookshelf

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)