A welcome mirror for rainbow families.
Initially upset about a broken routine, a child gets a special surprise.
A long-haired, brown-skinned child thinks they’re “lucky” because having split parents means two rooms: a pink room at Daddy’s and a blue room at Mommy’s. As the endpapers’ sticker-decorated calendar reveals, the child’s schedule gets a little complicated as they shuffle back and forth among households and school. But wherever they go, they bring Daisy, their blue stuffed dog, with them. Whether with Mommy or with Daddy and his partner Harry, there’s no shortage of fun (and a little yucky broccoli). One Tuesday, the child is supposed to be with Daddy but Mommy shows up at school instead. Mommy says “Daddy had something special to do today.” That makes the child—and Daisy—mad. Where could Daddy be? And what is the special surprise? Using different solid-color backgrounds, Kreloff effectively compares and contrasts the child’s routines at their two homes. The childlike cartoon drawings combine thick pencil lines with collage, making the human figures pop on the page. Taking place after a separation has already occurred, the story delightfully normalizes and affirms co-parenting. Still, the child’s first-person narration and illustrations do tilt a bit in Daddy’s favor. Both Mommy and Daddy have brown skin; Harry presents White. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 39.1% of actual size.)
A welcome mirror for rainbow families. (new puppy instructions) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 11, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4891-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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