SPARKLE

In Hoffman’s illustrated children’s book, a young girl struggles to convey stories on paper.

Jasmine is an elementary schooler with a passion for storytelling. She loves art and hearing her teacher read aloud, but has difficulty reading and writing herself. Her letters on the page are shaky, barely legible, and confusing to others because she mixes up cases and misspells words. She also has a hard time copying sentences from the chalkboard. Her hardest moments in class are when her teacher, Ms. Anderson, asks pupils to read their own writing aloud, or when she must work with others in a group. One day, Ms. Anderson gives her an assignment that makes her confidence plummet: She must tell a creative story on paper. The youngster has no idea if she can create a tale that other people will find comprehensible. Soon, though, she decides to convey a narrative through illustration instead of text: “The pictures came to life on the page as she presented her tale. Jasmine’s story sparkled.” Thus, in Hoffman’s most recent picture book since Big Dreams (2024), a young girl learns to embrace her talents. Although the main character’s learning difference isn’t explicitly identified, this story may inspire readers who experience issues such as dyslexia or dysgraphia, the latter of which seems underrepresented in children’s literature. The narrative might have benefited from the inclusion of an extra moment of conflict, as Jasmine finds her way to visual storytelling a little too quickly; however, this does not take away from the book’s overall quality. Mello’s illustrations feel larger than life and full of motion, whether they offer imaginative visions of Jasmine fearfully stumbling across huge books or being swept away by anxiety or joy. Jasmine is depicted with brown skin; other students are shown with a range of skin tones.

An often-engaging book that effectively acknowledges and celebrates different ways of learning.