A stunningly illustrated celebration of heritage that will require some adult guidance.
An unexpected museum trip changes the way a girl sees her past.
Tan-skinned, dark-haired Sakina’s plans for spending the morning at the seashore are dashed by a sandstorm. So she and her mother head to the museum, where the bored Sakina observes several statues: “chubby crocodiles filled with papers,” a “blue jaguar guarding the first set of laws ever written,” and “winged lions.” Back home, she realizes that a tiny crocodile, jaguar, and lion have stowed away in her bag. Sakina chases them through the house, only to stumble upon a picture of her grandmother that she’s never before taken the time to examine. The photograph is just the start of a series of reminders that “thousands and thousands of years” exist both within the magical artifacts and within Sakina. Rendered in a gold and pastel palette, the artwork is sumptuous. While the text is lyrical, at times it feels cryptic; Sakina’s discovery that there are poems written on Crocodile’s papers leads to a sudden appreciation of her heritage, though it’s not clear why. Marwan’s author’s note, which discusses the work of 19th-century archeologists and her own experiences visiting institutions such as the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, fills in some gaps, but adults may need to help young readers parse some of the story’s elements. Though it’s never stated where Sakina lives, the backmatter and the use of Arabic imply a Middle Eastern setting.
A stunningly illustrated celebration of heritage that will require some adult guidance. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: April 29, 2025
ISBN: 9781547613427
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
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