A touching exploration of the complicated dynamics of friendship.
Is Anthony and Julian’s friendship doomed?
When Julian excitedly shows off the marble he received for his birthday, Anthony is impressed. The children play with it each day that spring—until the marble goes missing. The next day—which Anthony describes as “the last day Julian was my best friend”—things proceed normally. The kids awaken before sunrise, prepare breakfast, bike to the beach, and build sand castles; Julian says that he’d have put his marble on top of the castle, if he still had it. That evening, as the two camp out, Anthony feels guilty about a misdeed. Turns out, the marble isn’t lost; Anthony took it but is afraid to confess. When Julian calls Anthony his best friend, Anthony decides to own up and give back the marble. Julian’s thrilled that Anthony “found” it. Anthony thinks that Julian doesn’t understand that Anthony took it, but Julian’s glance at his friend’s remorseful face settles that. Another surprise awaits. Julian wholly forgives Anthony: “You gave it back. You’ll always be my best friend.” Readers will be pleased by the satisfying conclusion to this heartwarming story and will root for the children’s continuing friendship. The tale delivers an important message about forgiveness and the importance of taking responsibility for wrongdoings, though it’s not entirely credible that a child would so easily display this much forbearance. The loose, digital illustrations are appealing. Red-haired Anthony presents white; Julian is brown-haired and brown-skinned.
A touching exploration of the complicated dynamics of friendship. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781662516160
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted...
Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.
A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what’s going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a “pig-e-phant” doesn’t come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to “fix [them]selves” on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the “clay mates” is perfectly captured by Petty’s feisty, spot-on dialogue: “This was your idea…and it was a BAD one.” Eldridge’s endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist’s work table to great effect.
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own . (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-316-30311-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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