A springboard for readers to consider their own ways to welcome.
Ashman and Chou look at some simple ways to say, “Hello, friend. / I’m glad you’re here,” with acts of kindness and friendly gestures.
From waves and handshakes among humans to nose-to-nose sniffing between two dogs, the text looks at the many ways one can share a welcome with someone else, be they old or young, well known or someone new to you. Retrieving a blown-away hat, helping a new student find their way, showering love on a newly adopted dog, holding a homemade sign at the airport arrivals gate, and providing toad abodes and birdhouses are all put forth in the gently rhyming text. ”An offering, / A smiling face / That lights an unfamiliar place” shows neighbors bringing garden largesse and a neighborhood picnic invitation to a family that’s just moved in—cardboard boxes are piled outside, and they were previously seen arriving at the airport. That neighborhood picnic ends the book on a high note, people from all walks of life and every shade (many from previous pages) sharing a wonderful day together. Two women wear hijab; a small kid uses a wheelchair; and there is a same-sex couple raising a baby. Simple, stylized artwork in bright shades keep the focus on the interactions, and readers will delight in finding the blue butterfly in every scene.
A springboard for readers to consider their own ways to welcome. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: June 16, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-374-31318-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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