A comforting resource for military families coping with deployment and a worthwhile addition to any library.
With its companion, one of two delightful books that celebrate parents who are in the military.
Tolson showcases military mommies from different branches of the armed services (Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy) and of every color. The book starts off with three different mommies saying goodbye to their families. The first-person rhyming text reiterates that “my mommy is a hero” for many reasons. She is “courageous, strong, inspired.” She is “leading others every day.” She “helps people in need.” The second line in each stanza often echoes emotions military children might feel when their mommies are deployed. The line “I know she’s always with me, even when she’s far away” is illustrated by a small vignette of a child writing a letter to Mommy. On another page, another mom is helping her daughter with her homework as the text reads “I love her and look up to her, she’s always guiding me.” Complementing the characters’ racial diversity are their wide-ranging jobs. A pilot sits in the cockpit while an aircraft marshall directs traffic on the runway. A medic treats a child in a rural village. Companion title My Daddy Is a Hero is similar in vein but with different scenarios. Nonetheless, the concepts are parallel, and both books highlight the leadership and bravery of both women and men in uniform.
A comforting resource for military families coping with deployment and a worthwhile addition to any library. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: June 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-61067-721-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: April 24, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2018
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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