bookshelf

THE FLOWER GIRL WORE CELERY

Name: THE FLOWER GIRL WORE CELERY
Author: Meryl Gordon
ISBN: 978-1-4677-7844-2

by Meryl Gordon ; illustrated by Holly Clifton-Brown ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2016

A wedding of the new century joyously wrapped in tradition.

bookshelf

Little Emma’s cousin is getting married, and such a delightful mix of something old, something new it is.

Emma’s cousin Hannah has asked her to be the flower girl at her upcoming nuptials. Emma is excited and happy but confused. Her mother describes her dress as “celery,” and Emma, taking this literally, believes that she will walk down the aisle adorned with stalks of the green vegetable. She also mishears when told that she will be accompanied by a ring bearer and thinks that a bear will be her escort. But the biggest assumption is based on cousin Hannah’s intended, who has the gender-neutral name Alex. Alex, readers learn later in the story, is also female. The wedding is a blend of traditional and modern Judaism. The ceremony is held under a canopy, wine glasses are shattered by the newly married couple, the ketubah, or wedding contract, is read, but the rabbi is a woman—the nontraditional element. Gordon’s story of a same sex marriage is happy and positive. No adults or children raise eyebrows or concerns beyond Emma’s initial surprise. The entire affair is oy!—such a joy. Clifton-Brown’s colorful and humorous illustrations of the white family with round faces and rosy red checks depict a most happy assembly.

A wedding of the new century joyously wrapped in tradition. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-4677-7844-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Kar-Ben

Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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)

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

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

bookshelf

IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

bookshelf

A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)