This allegory about the actions of individuals making a difference and the importance of hope is relayed in beautiful...
The natural world’s enriching effect, the tragedy of its fragile state, and the need for both action and hope are portrayed allegorically in this picture book imported from Canada.
Lucy, a little girl depicted with skin the white of the paper, loves nature. Papineau’s narrative glistens in its lyrical descriptions of Lucy’s activities as she participates in “the dance of the seasons,” and illustrator Hamel’s sprightly illustrations, full of translucent swirls of line and pattern, echo this dance. But then Earth becomes diseased, and Hamel’s illustrations display harsh black lines and darker colors. Angularity and darkness continue, both illustratively and narratively, as Lucy “give[s] up on the Earth.” When her tears fall into the brook (after a dragonfly friend brushes them off Lucy’s cheeks with her wings), her message of sadness spreads across the world and reaches Tama, a brown-skinned boy with textured, black hair, who knows “how to listen to…the songs of the brook.” Tama spreads the word, and people all over begin to want to “cure this child” by healing the planet. It’s unfortunate that Lucy is shown as white since it conveys the assumption that the happiness of white people is of paramount importance and it’s the job of brown people to see to it.
This allegory about the actions of individuals making a difference and the importance of hope is relayed in beautiful language and delicate illustrations—and a subtle white bias. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 3, 2018
ISBN: 978-2-7338-5620-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Auzou Publishing
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Only for dedicated fans of the series.
When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.
“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.
Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4894-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of...
An international story tackles a serious global issue with Reynolds’ characteristic visual whimsy.
Gie Gie—aka Princess Gie Gie—lives with her parents in Burkina Faso. In her kingdom under “the African sky, so wild and so close,” she can tame wild dogs with her song and make grass sway, but despite grand attempts, she can neither bring the water closer to home nor make it clean. French words such as “maintenant!” (now!) and “maman” (mother) and local color like the karite tree and shea nuts place the story in a French-speaking African country. Every morning, Gie Gie and her mother perch rings of cloth and large clay pots on their heads and walk miles to the nearest well to fetch murky, brown water. The story is inspired by model Georgie Badiel, who founded the Georgie Badiel Foundation to make clean water accessible to West Africans. The details in Reynolds’ expressive illustrations highlight the beauty of the West African landscape and of Princess Gie Gie, with her cornrowed and beaded hair, but will also help readers understand that everyone needs clean water—from the children of Burkina Faso to the children of Flint, Michigan.
Though told by two outsiders to the culture, this timely and well-crafted story will educate readers on the preciousness of potable water. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-399-17258-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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