A sweet and accessible picture book about the patience it takes to make a place home.
Maya misses her original home, a place where she can find mosques and monsoons and—most importantly—her grandmother, who always smells like flowers.
Before Maya left, Nani gave her a gift of seeds, urging Maya to “bloom where you are planted.” Maya now lives in a place where she is lonely and feels different from all the other children. At first, Maya thinks she’ll never find the right soil for her seeds—just like she feels as though she will never belong. Finally, she decides to plant just one, just to see what might happen. In the following days, she also tentatively begins friendships with a few classmates. As she waits for growth—and, in parallel, for her new friendships to blossom—she remembers that Nani told her that seeds take time, and that change, like plant growth, requires patience. This book’s story is driven just as much by its gentle, detailed illustrations, whose smudged edges and light palette create a gentle, reassuring atmosphere, as by its text. The central metaphor is mostly successful, and the lyrical story about learning to belong is one that feels hopeful and familiar. Pictures and text suggest her former home is in South Asia and her new one is in North America.
A sweet and accessible picture book about the patience it takes to make a place home. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-943147-93-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: The Innovation Press
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
Still, preschoolers will likely savor this mouthwatering treatment of a subject that looms large in many early school...
The familiar theme of the challenges facing a new kid in town is given an original treatment by photographer Border in this book of photos of three-dimensional objects in a simple modeled landscape.
Peanut Butter is represented by a slice of white bread spread with the popular condiment. The other characters in the story—a hamburger with a pair of hot dogs in tow, a bowl of alphabet soup, a meatball jumping a rope of spaghetti, a carton of French fries and a pink cupcake—are represented by skillfully crafted models of these foods, anthropomorphized using simple wire construction. Rejected by each character in turn in his search for playmates, Peanut Butter discovers in the end that Jelly is his true match (not Cupcake, as the title suggests), perhaps because she is the only one who looks like him, being a slice of white bread spread with jelly. The friendly foods end up happily playing soccer together. Some parents may have trouble with the unabashedly happy depiction of carbs and American junk food (no carrots or celery sticks in this landscape), and others may find themselves troubled by the implication that friendship across difference is impossible.
Still, preschoolers will likely savor this mouthwatering treatment of a subject that looms large in many early school experiences. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 29, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-399-16773-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
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
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