Astute and adorable commentary on media representation.
A red panda notices that media is dominated by giant pandas.
One day, Red (an adorable red panda) and her friend Gee (an equally cute black-and-white giant panda) find a book about pandas. Red’s initial excitement turns to disappointment when she sees that the entire book is about giant pandas, with nary a red panda in sight. “Who wrote this anyway!?” she fumes. “Ohhhhhhh!” says Gee as they spot a giant panda’s author photo on the back flap. Red decides to write her own book about red pandas, but as the pair walk through the town, readers will notice all the giant panda merchandise (even red panda children have black-and-white dolls), including the bookstore display. “No one wants to read about red pandas,” Red concludes and tosses her half-finished book away. Later, the friends find a group of pandas crowded around her unfinished book. “That one looks just like me!” one red panda points out. They tell Red that they want and need this book, which inspires her to persevere. Greanias illustrates perfectly, in a way that children will intuitively understand, why it’s so crucial for everyone to see themselves depicted in media; Iwai’s lovable panda characters, rendered in colorful watercolor, pencil, and digital tools, are irresistible. A final joyful spread portrays a future in which both types of pandas are represented everywhere, and crayon-drawn endpapers show pages from Red’s book. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Astute and adorable commentary on media representation. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781728265650
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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