A well-illustrated story that will prepare youngsters for visits to new places.
Lamar Gordon and Liana Gordon present a tale about aliens finding friendship during a field trip to a swimming pool.
On the lush planet Venesha, all lifeforms grow up and develop magical powers. One humanoid named Nortis lives in the high glacier region, and he wakes up one morning looking forward to a field trip. After breakfast, the three-eyed, orange-skinned, pointy-eared Nortis brushes his pointy teeth; he remembers to put his bathing suit on underneath his clothes before taking a school bus with his class to the pool. Nortis’ friend Porjan asks to swim with him, and Nortis happily agrees. They notice another classmate, Jun, sitting alone and decide to invite her to swim with them, as well. The three have a fabulous time, and afterward, the trio eat lunch. The book’s overall storyline is instructional, straightforwardly preparing young readers for what to expect when going swimming. Girouard’s full-color cartoon illustrations are fun and creative in its portrayal of the otherworldly milieu; in many ways, it’s the most engaging part of the book. The tale ends rather abruptly in a cafeteria and would have benefited from a smoother wrap-up, such as an epilogue. The story’s initial magical aspect is never addressed again; readers never discover what powers Nortis or his friends have.
A well-illustrated story that will prepare youngsters for visits to new places.Pub Date: May 18, 2023
ISBN: 978-1960976130
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Lamar Golden
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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
Unusual illustrations enhance an engaging, informative narrative.
What can a worm do?
A little worm sets off on a “twirl” to “see the world.” But when it overhears a human referring to it as “just a worm,” its feelings are hurt. The worm asks other critters—including a caterpillar, a spider, a dragonfly—what they can do. After each answer (turn into a butterfly, spin silk thread, fly), the worm becomes more and more dejected because it can’t do any of these things. “Maybe I am just a worm.” But then the worm encounters a ladybug, who eats aphids and other insects, and the worm realizes that it eats dead plants and animals and keeps gardens clean. And though the worm can’t pollinate like the bee, it does create castings (poop) that help plants grow and stay healthy. These abilities, the worm realizes in triumph, are important! The cleverness of this story lies in its lighthearted, effective dissemination of information about various insects as well as earthworms. It doesn’t hurt that the expressive little worm is downright adorable, with emotions that will resonate with anyone who has felt unimportant. The stunning illustrations are done in quilled paper—a centuries-old technique that involves assembling strips of colored paper into shapes—which adds sparkle and originality. A tutorial of how to make a quilled butterfly and a page on earthworm facts round out the book. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Unusual illustrations enhance an engaging, informative narrative. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 14, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-06-321256-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
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