A much-needed reminder about the importance and joy of living in the present.
A girl notices she is the only one appreciating the day’s charms.
Hannah, a White-presenting young girl, and her beige dog, Pippin, head out for a walk in this Spanish import translated by Brokenbrow. Hannah greets Carol—a Black woman with Afro-textured hair—who responds with a distracted “Oh, hi,” without making eye contact. In the artwork, Carol is shaded blue while everything else is rendered in true-to-life colors. As Hannah marvels at everyday wonders like cloud formations, a squirrel, and an Asian-presenting baby outside a bookshop, she encounters more busy, self-absorbed adults, all shaded blue, who cannot be reached. Hannah’s reaction, refreshingly, is not one of frustration but of inquiry: “Maybe she’s under some kind of magic spell!” Late in the tale, Hannah realizes everyone is looking down at their cellphones and missing out on the beauty of the day. Her solution is to bring printed photos “of flowers, clouds, rivers, bugs, and trees” with her the next day. She shows everyone what is right in front of them, gently and joyfully interrupting their obsessive smartphone use. When she practices this with Carol, who is no longer shaded blue, the pair end up looking for shapes in the clouds. Merlán’s understated narrative encourages curiosity and calls out digital distraction without any moralizing. Pasamar’s realistic colored-pencil illustrations lend old-fashioned simplicity to this modern tale. Families who do not live in walkable neighborhoods may find it odd that Hannah roams alone. There is no body-type diversity presented. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A much-needed reminder about the importance and joy of living in the present. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 15, 2022
ISBN: 978-84-18302-50-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cuento de Luz
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2022
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
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)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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