Leaves no doubts that girls are to be cheered on and reckoned with.
Empowerment rocks!
Narrated in bouncy verses (with occasionally stumbling rhythm), this title catalogs the myriad possibilities that exist in being female and the varied activities that girls do. Girls with diverse skin tones, hair colors and textures, and clothing styles are presented as almost unfailingly smiling as they explore, play sports, make art and music, conduct experiments in science. Refreshingly, some are depicted using wheelchairs or wearing glasses or hijabs. The infectious, cheerleaderlike tone is unsurprising and repeats the anthem “I’m a GIRL! I’m FANTASTIC! I’m strong, brave, and proud!” The cartoony, energetic artwork is appealing overall, with front endpapers presenting a gallery of possible career choices. However, some illustrations are unsuccessful in conveying information. For example, a spread highlighting genuine female science and medical luminaries features roughly rendered two-toned portraits that are hard to recognize; the face of Dr. Alexa Canady, America’s first African-American female neurosurgeon, is blue. A similar misstep occurs on the back endpapers, an album of 15 illustrated, labeled naïve-style paintings, rather than photos, of renowned women, including Jane Goodall, Serena Williams, and Malala Yousafzai. They and the other, lesser-known but equally shout-out–worthy, notables, including Nicola Adams, “the first female and openly LGBTQ person to win a boxing gold medal at the Olympics,” look disappointingly generic, though at least these diverse women’s skin tones remain identifiable.
Leaves no doubts that girls are to be cheered on and reckoned with. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4380-5062-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Barron's
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
