A fun reminder to be open to friendship.
A girl throws a tea party and ends up with more guests than she expected.
New in town, Agnes sets out to make friends by inviting some girls from her class to a tea party. She stipulates on the invitation that everyone should bring a “plus one.” After Agnes accidentally drops one of the invitations on the ground at school, a kid named Dave picks it up. When no one except Dave shows up to her house, Agnes turns him away with the excuse that he didn’t bring a plus one; in reality, she doesn’t want “this strange kid” at her party. Undeterred, Dave gets creative and cheerfully knocks on the door multiple times with a lineup of different “plus ones,” including a goose, a snake, and even his own mother. Each time, Agnes rejects Dave and his guests for different reasons, but eventually she realizes that she’s alone at her own party. Agnes observes Dave having fun with his “unusual group of friends” outside and asks to join them. But then, Agnes’ guests show up. Will she ditch Dave? No! Agnes invites the entire group (including the goose) inside for tea. Hare’s vibrant illustrations complement this sweet and silly story that makes clear that sometimes we can find friends in unexpected places. His wide-eyed, expressive, cartoonish characters effectively convey a range of emotions—from frustration to excitement—with humor. Agnes is tan-skinned, Dave is light-skinned, and the (human) party guests are racially diverse.
A fun reminder to be open to friendship. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2024
ISBN: 9780823450435
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Margaret Ferguson/Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
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
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BOOK REVIEW
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle...
Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine’s experience as she struggles to realize her vision.
First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: “[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn’t turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she “tinkers,” “wrenches,” “fiddles,” “examines,” “stares” and “tweaks.” Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner’s through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant.
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-55453-704-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
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BOOK REVIEW
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