Representation of a Black farmer adds value to this agriculture-themed book for young readers.
A Black family visits a farm in Johnson’s counting picture book.
The narrator—one of three young granddaughters—notes that Granddad, a farmer, “has one hundred acres of land. He loves tractors and machines. He loves crops and animals. He loves fresh air and dirt.” Their trips to his farm include helping with animal-related chores. The location, according to the afterword, is based on that of Johnson’s North Carolinian grandfather. Biscoe’s detailed, full-color cartoon images of apple trees, strawberries, tomatoes, roaming horses, and diverse livestock evoke a prosaic, all-encompassing mythological American archetype. There’s no evidence that Granddad has hired help for his seven adorable cows, eight pigs, nine chickens, or for his many acres of orchard, which obfuscates how much labor the work entails. However, this cute story offers a refreshing depiction of a Black family’s connection to familial land and of how agricultural knowledge is passed on. Hints of a buy-local ethos are also apparent: “Granddad sells tomatoes, spinach, green beans, potatoes, and peppers to local markets.” Simple counting tasks—involving one farmhouse or four deer—alternate with longer, more involved paragraphs about farm work; a read-aloud may be modified for younger or older children. Backmatter includes advice on how parents can engage kids in counting and literacy-promoting conversations.
Representation of a Black farmer adds value to this agriculture-themed book for young readers.Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2022
ISBN: 9798986307800
Page Count: 32
Publisher: West Oak Lane Kids, LLC
Review Posted Online: Aug. 8, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
Quirky, familiar fun for series devotees.
After Duncan finds his crayons gone—yet again—letters arrive, detailing their adventures in friendship.
Eleven crayons send missives from their chosen spots throughout Duncan’s home (and one from his classroom). Red enjoys the thrill of extinguishing “pretend fires” with Duncan’s toy firetruck. White, so often dismissed as invisible, finds a new calling subbing in for the missing queen on the black-and-white chessboard. “Now everyone ALWAYS SEES ME!…(Well, half the time!)” Pink’s living the dream as a pastry chef helming the Breezy Bake Oven, “baking everything from little cupcakes…to…OTHER little cupcakes!” Teal, who’s hitched a ride to school in Duncan’s backpack, meets the crayons in the boy’s desk and writes, “Guess what? I HAVE A TWIN! How come you never told me?” Duncan wants to see his crayons and “meet their new friends.” A culminating dinner party assembles the crayons and their many guests: a table tennis ball, dog biscuits, a well-loved teddy bear, and more. The premise—personified crayons, away and back again—is well-trammeled territory by now, after over a dozen books and spinoffs, and Jeffers once more delivers his signature cartooning and hand-lettering. Though the pages lack the laugh-out-loud sight gags and side-splittingly funny asides of previous outings, readers—especially fans of the crayons’ previous outings—will enjoy checking in on their pals.
Quirky, familiar fun for series devotees. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 3, 2025
ISBN: 9780593622360
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025
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