MING GOES TO SCHOOL

Name: MING GOES TO SCHOOL
Author: Deirdre Sullivan
ISBN: 978-1-5107-0050-5

by Deirdre Sullivan ; illustrated by Maja Löfdahl ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 5, 2016

Featuring peeks at common classroom sights and activities, this empathetic tale could also be a discussion starter about...

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The first year of school for Ming is full of opposites and fun, but some things take time.

School is “where she learns to say hello… // and good-bye.” Flanked by her father, Ming surveys the friendly faces of her teacher and classmates; a turn of the page reveals Ming plastered to the window as her father’s silhouette recedes. She meets new friends and introduces old ones: her well-loved stuffed animal at show and tell. There are “pinkie-lifting tea parties” and walking the plank. But though Ming conquers all these new things, she’s just not ready for the big red slide: “growing up takes time.” As the year proceeds, the seasons turn in Löfdahl’s watercolor illustrations, which are soft, rounded, and slightly fuzzy. White backgrounds keep the focus on the characters and allow the brief text space of its own. Ming’s name implies Asian heritage. She has round eyes like all the other children, her skin is medium-toned, and she sports Pippi Longstocking braids in her dark hair. Her father appears white, and her classmates are diverse. School is “where all things… // are worth waiting for." The final, oval illustration pictures a smiling, confident Ming posed atop the slide in spring.

Featuring peeks at common classroom sights and activities, this empathetic tale could also be a discussion starter about growth and readiness. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: July 5, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-5107-0050-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sky Pony Press

Review Posted Online: May 13, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
MING AND HER POPPY
by Deirdre Sullivan ; illustrated by Maja Löfdahl

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LOVE FROM THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR

by Eric Carle ; illustrated by Eric Carle ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 15, 2015

Safe to creep on by.

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Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.

In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.

Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap

Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE FOOD?
edited by Eric Carle

- BOOK REVIEW
WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE BUG?
edited by Eric Carle

- BOOK REVIEW
MY FIRST I SEE YOU
by Eric Carle ; illustrated by Eric Carle

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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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)