“Your family’s a story / That’s unique and true. // A family is beautiful, / As beautiful as you.” Can't argue with that!
A celebration of the myriad permutations of the all-American family.
The book is similar in tone, design, and message to Saks and Smart’s earlier Families Belong (2020). The many families shown combine to represent a range of racial, ethnic, and gender configurations. The accompanying rhyming verses recognize each family’s circumstances, interests, and activities as unique strengths—neither right nor wrong, just different. In one family, the father lying on the floor to play a board game wears a turban. In another, the blond-bearded man has a pale complexion, the woman is dark-skinned with straight black hair, and the child looks like the woman. The accompanying text reads: “A family can look / The same or maybe not. / Dad’s from somewhere cold. / Mom’s from somewhere hot.” Another verse hints at a family’s refugee status: “Some families were born / In places far away / And traveled all together / To where it’s safe to play.” Single, same-gender, and separated or divorced parents are depicted as well as a multigenerational family. Children familiar with the Noodle Loaf podcast version of the song may be initially confused by the added verses and minor word changes, but the new verses fit the original song’s cadence. Playful, clear, uncluttered graphic illustrations match the text while adding details not mentioned in the verses.
“Your family’s a story / That’s unique and true. // A family is beautiful, / As beautiful as you.” Can't argue with that! (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: April 6, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-22365-9
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Rise x Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.
This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.
Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.
An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A lovely package, this quiet title will be best as a gift book for new moms eager to read aloud to the newest members of...
A mother’s observations of her new baby lead to a series of sweet comparisons to various animals.
“When I met you, you were small and trembling, and I thought you might be a little bunny. / I held you close so you were warm.” Teen author Marr (Made for You, 2014, etc.) uses playful yet comforting language in her picture-book debut. The baby’s squirming kicks remind her of a “lost kangaroo”; a lifting of the child’s head makes her think of a “curious lizard”; and the little one’s howl seems like that of a “lonely wolf.” Each of the child’s behaviors leads to a tender action taken by the mother: tucking the baby in, offering milk, and giving a bath. Each time a new creature is introduced, White gently changes the dominant color in the muted pastel palette of her watercolor and gouache illustrations. That hue is also reflected in the hand-lettered text, giving the overall design of the book a vintage feel. When the baby smiles, the mother knows “You are not a bunny-roo-lizard-wolf-kitten-piggy. You are my baby.” The final page shows the curled-up infant asleep in a pile of blankets.
A lovely package, this quiet title will be best as a gift book for new moms eager to read aloud to the newest members of their families. (Picture book. 1-3)Pub Date: April 14, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-399-16742-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2015
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