A highly original tale of trying on—and ultimately integrating—multiple identities.
When an old lion dies, his bored reflection lives on…and finds a perfect match in a discontented girl.
The lion’s reflection winds up outside Harriet’s house. Soon he decides he wants to be her reflection. As Harriet unhappily walks to school, nose in a book, the gigantic animal leaps into a puddle in which Harriet’s wavering image raises her hands in shock. When the child gazes down to see the lion reflected there, she comments, “How fierce I look this morning.” At first, she has “a terribly good time” on the playground. A newly confident Harriet thrives in the classroom, too, until later in the week, when her beastly behavior lands her in trouble. Kadi’s paintings channel the vivid colors of Paul Gauguin’s Tahitian art and Maira Kalman’s whimsical faces. Dynamic energy flows in the curving lines of characters and landscapes. Ultimately, Harriet misses her former self. While hiding under the bed, she finds a small mirror and a face she remembers. Confronting the lion, she comes up with a solution that satisfies everyone. Translated from French, Kadi’s dynamic narrative deftly exploits the universal fascination with the mystery of mirrors. Brief, matter-of-fact sentences and situations lead to wildly humorous visuals. The girl’s skin is as orange as the lion’s; she is distinguished by wavy, black hair. Her class is diverse.
A highly original tale of trying on—and ultimately integrating—multiple identities. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780802856210
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
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
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