Pleasing and stimulating.
From pompoms to Ph.D.!
Mireya Mayor, a Cuban American primatologist who grew up in Miami, was interested in wild animals from a young age—her childhood home teemed with animals, from dogs to snapping turtles to a chicken and everything in between. Although her interest in nature hit a speed bump when her mother sent her to ballet class instead of letting her join the Girl Scouts, Mireya discovered a talent for dance that led to her becoming an NFL cheerleader while she attended college. Her desire to work with animals—particularly primates—led her to international fieldwork in the jungles of South America as well as struggles with colleagues who judged Mireya based on her looks and not her accomplishments. Her continued work in far-off places caught the attention of National Geographic, which made her its first woman wildlife TV reporter, and on an expedition to Madagascar, Mireya discovered a new species of lemur. With this discovery, Mireya successfully petitioned the prime minister of Madagascar to create a national park to ensure the lemur’s survival. The story effectively documents Mireya’s career path, and attentive readers and caregivers will have moments to consider themes of prejudice and how everyone has unlimited capability for divergent interests. The backmatter, which contains additional information about mouse lemurs and the lemur reserve and an author’s note with more details about Mireya’s career path, including how she obtained her doctorate, will help direct curious readers to learn more. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Pleasing and stimulating. (glossary, further reading) (Picture-book biography. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-8075-4085-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Whitman
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
Another playful imagination-stretcher.
Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.
As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.
Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781339049052
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era.
The New Orleans school child who famously broke the color line in 1960 while surrounded by federal marshals describes the early days of her experience from a 6-year-old’s perspective.
Bridges told her tale to younger children in 2009’s Ruby Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes. “I didn’t find out what being ‘the first’ really meant until the day I arrived at this new school,” she writes. Unfrightened by the crowd of “screaming white people” that greets her at the school’s door (she thinks it’s like Mardi Gras) but surprised to find herself the only child in her classroom, and even the entire building, she gradually realizes the significance of her act as (in Smith’s illustration) she compares a small personal photo to the all-White class photos posted on a bulletin board and sees the difference. As she reflects on her new understanding, symbolic scenes first depict other dark-skinned children marching into classes in her wake to friendly greetings from lighter-skinned classmates (“School is just school,” she sensibly concludes, “and kids are just kids”) and finally an image of the bright-eyed icon posed next to a soaring bridge of reconciliation. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era. (author and illustrator notes, glossary) (Autobiographical picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-75388-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
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