bookshelf

THE RED TIN BOX

Name: THE RED TIN BOX
Author: Matthew Burgess
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7973-5

by Matthew Burgess ; illustrated by Evan Turk ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 4, 2023

An unforgettable ode to intergenerational bonds.

bookshelf

A girl grows up and passes on her childhood treasures to her granddaughter.

Before sunrise on her eighth birthday, Maude, a young Black girl, heads into the woods, where she buries a red tin box full of treasures beneath a dogwood tree and makes herself a promise. As she grows older—raising a family of her own with a Black, female-presenting partner—she never forgets that red tin box, but she does begin to forget its contents. Overcome with urgency one day, Maude picks up her granddaughter Eve, and, as they drive to Maude’s childhood home, Maude tells Eve about the box. Somehow, Maude knows where to dig, and together they stumble upon Maude’s simple treasures. On the drive home, Maude passes down stories and later gives Eve the treasures so that her granddaughter can make her own promise to herself. Majestic illustrations with smudgy strokes and breathtakingly vibrant hues that bleed into each other—the reds, purples, and pinks of sunset, the blues and blacks of twilight—heartwarmingly limn Maude’s love for her family and the life she has lived. Simple, poetic language engages the senses throughout this quiet, subtle celebration of familial relationships. This is the perfect read-aloud to showcase how traditions and stories are passed down to future generations and that simple items can bring the most joy along with the stories attached to them. All characters depicted are Black. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

An unforgettable ode to intergenerational bonds. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: April 4, 2023

ISBN: 978-1-4521-7973-5

Page Count: 64

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

- BOOK REVIEW
WORDS WITH WINGS AND MAGIC THINGS
by Matthew Burgess ; illustrated by Doug Salati

- BOOK REVIEW
THE PURPLE ONE
by Matthew Burgess ; illustrated by Sirin Thada

- BOOK REVIEW
AS EDWARD IMAGINED
by Matthew Burgess ; illustrated by Marc Majewski

bookshelf

LITTLE BLUE TRUCK AND RACER RED

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 2025

A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.

bookshelf

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

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK MAKES A FRIEND
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry

- BOOK REVIEW
TIME FOR SCHOOL, LITTLE BLUE TRUCK
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S VALENTINE
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph

bookshelf

ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

bookshelf

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)