by Nora Brech ; illustrated by Nora Brech ; translated by Polly Lawson ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 6, 2022
A joyous conservation message wrapped in a colorful feast for the eyes.
Two children embark on a journey to help a solitary bird find a mate.
Professor Feather, a scientist, is distraught. They've found mates for many rare birds but not the rarest, a small gray bird with long spindly legs known as the Rainbow Bird. Alex and Jo, young friends of the professor, offer to find its mate. They sail off and ask the House Birds, Underwater Birds, and Lamp Birds if they’ve seen a Rainbow Bird, to no avail. One bouncing response from a multicolored row of Big-to-Little Birds (each smaller than the last) is stunning in its simplicity and playfulness. Ready to give up, Alex and Jo spot a Rainbow Bird dangerously perched on a rock at the head of a waterfall. Luckily, the children survive the tumble over the falls and land with the last Rainbow Bird on Jo’s hand. In an especially energetic, vibrant illustration, the Rainbow Bird’s feathers paint “the air: pink and blue and red and green, and every colour in between.” A giant Tower Bird flies Alex, Jo, and the Rainbow Bird back to the professor, and the two birds are very happy to be together. While the theme about the importance of safeguarding rare animals from extinction comes through clearly in this Norwegian import, the rich, rainbow-colored illustrations are truly the stars here. Professor Feather and Alex are light-skinned; Jo is brown-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A joyous conservation message wrapped in a colorful feast for the eyes. (information on conservation) (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-78250-800-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Floris
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2022
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by Nora Brech ; illustrated by Nora Brech
by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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by Pip Jones ; illustrated by Sara Ogilvie ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2020
A disappointing follow-up.
Inventor Izzy Gizmo is back in this sequel to her eponymous debut (2017).
While busily inventing one day, Izzy receives an invitation from the Genius Guild to their annual convention. Though Izzy’s “inventions…don’t always work,” Grandpa (apparently her sole caregiver) encourages her to go. The next day they undertake a long journey “over fields, hills, and waves” and “mile after mile” to isolated Technoff Isle. There, Izzy finds she must compete against four other kids to create the most impressive machine. The colorful, detail-rich illustrations chronicle how poor Izzy is thwarted at every turn by Abi von Lavish, a Veruca Salt–esque character who takes all the supplies for herself. But when Abi abandons her project, Izzy salvages the pieces and decides to take Grandpa’s advice to create a machine that “can really be put to good use.” A frustrated Izzy’s impatience with a friend almost foils her chance at the prize, but all’s well that ends well. There’s much to like: Brown-skinned inventor girl Izzy is an appealing character, it’s great to see a nurturing brown-skinned male caregiver, the idea of an “Invention Convention” is fun, and a sustainable-energy invention is laudable. However, these elements don’t make up for rhymes that often feel forced and a lackluster story.
A disappointing follow-up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-164-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
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by Pip Jones ; illustrated by Laura Hughes
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by Pip Jones ; illustrated by Ella Okstad
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