The refrain, “I love being me,” offers a worthwhile affirmation, but cookie-cutter faces undermine the message about...
A book that pays homage to the versatility of black hair.
A dark-skinned black girl, eyes closed, face forward, greets readers on the cover against a bright yellow background, and she wears a pink bow (die-cut out of the case) in her wavy updo. This is one of many hairstyles featured in the illustrations, designed to help readers appreciate the potential for styling natural Afro hair. “Bomb braids,” “pom-pom puffs” and “‘fro-hawk” (an Afro-styled mohawk) also appear. Like these, most of the hairstyle names incorporate alliteration, making them fun to read aloud. At first glance, readers might think this book is about one girl’s hair—which is possible, given how many styles one head of afrotextured hair can sport—but skin color changes, as do clothes, earrings, and other details that are easily altered, although every girl holds the same face-front, eye-closed position. But the sameness of each face leaves no room for variations in other features such as the eyes, lips, and nose. Hence, young readers might consider this a paper version of the video games that allow changes in hairstyles on a face that has limited or no customizability—which also limits the book’s usefulness as multicultural literature.
The refrain, “I love being me,” offers a worthwhile affirmation, but cookie-cutter faces undermine the message about diversity. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9554-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019
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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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Another endearing and amusing outing with these winsome characters.
The Crayons love a holiday, and Mother’s Day is no exception.
Every color is different, and so is every mom. Purple’s mother, seated cross-legged in a yoga pose, “doesn’t color inside the lines.” Red’s works tirelessly to support her family, which sometimes means missing holidays. White Crayon adores his mother, “even though he can’t see her” (the accompanying image shows both crayons fading into the white background), while pale lime green Esteban’s mom supports his “dreams of adventure” by helping him pack. All the Crayons celebrate their families on this day, and not all the parents look like their children or are mothers. Laudably, Daywalt and Jeffers depict a variety of different families, allowing many readers to feel seen: Black can’t contain her love for both her mothers, the hair-covered brownish-beige Barfy Crayon embraces his stepmom, Chunky Toddler (a chubby crayon with a bite taken out of him) pays tribute to his dad on Mother’s Day, Yellow and Orange honor their grandmother, and Maroon, presumably adopted, sings the praises of his mom, a pot of glue who literally holds the family together. As in previous Crayon books, Jeffers’ elegantly quirky and humorous illustrations complement Daywalt’s delightful text, which adeptly balances humor and heart.
Another endearing and amusing outing with these winsome characters. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780593624586
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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