A beautiful snapshot of Guatemala, with a touch of magic.
Juanita, an Indigenous Maya girl living in a village on the shores of Lake Atitlán in Guatemala, loves counting the stars.
Juanita’s mother, along with the other women in the village, makes beautiful embroidered blouses known as huipiles to sell to visiting tourists. Juanita helps her family by cooking “delicious, crunchy tortillas” made from the corn her father grows. In the evenings, Juanita enjoys lying on the rooftop counting the stars. One day, her mother is too sick to finish a huipil she must deliver the next day. Unable to help and feeling sad, Juanita climbs up to the roof and falls asleep counting the stars. In this sweet and simple story, a little magic does the trick when a star provides Juanita with “a tiny golden needle” with which she is able to finish the huipil. A cascade of related good events follows the completion of the huipil, saving the family from a precarious situation. In the last spread, Juanita, now a grown woman, can be seen with what appears to be the Manhattan Bridge in New York City in the background, still making tortillas. Illustrations in rich, jewel-toned colors beautifully complement the story. The inhabitants of the village, who are mostly Maya, have olive skin and black hair. The book publishes simultaneously in Spanish as Juanita: La niña que contaba estrellas.
A beautiful snapshot of Guatemala, with a touch of magic. (author's note) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-84-18302-05-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Cuento de Luz
Review Posted Online: Aug. 10, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
Menacing and most likely to appeal to established fans of its co-creators.
Existing artwork from an artistic giant inspires a fairy-tale reimagination by a master of the horror genre.
In King’s interpretation of a classic Brothers Grimm story, which accompanies set and costume designs that the late Sendak created for a 1997 production of Engelbert Humperdinck’s opera, siblings Hansel and Gretel survive abandonment in the woods and an evil witch’s plot to gobble them up before finding their “happily ever after” alongside their father. Prose with the reassuring cadence of an old-timey tale, paired with Sendak’s instantly recognizable artwork, will lull readers before capitalizing on these creators’ knack for injecting darkness into seemingly safe spaces. Gaping faces loom in crevices of rocks and trees, and a gloomy palette of muted greens and ocher amplify the story’s foreboding tone, while King never sugarcoats the peach-skinned children’s peril. Branches with “clutching fingers” hide “the awful enchanted house” of a “child-stealing witch,” all portrayed in an eclectic mix of spot and full-bleed images. Featuring insults that might strike some as harsh (“idiot,” “fool”), the lengthy, dense text may try young readers’ patience, and the often overwhelmingly ominous mood feels more pitched to adults—particularly those familiar with King and Sendak—but an introduction acknowledges grandparents as a likely audience, and nostalgia may prompt leniency over an occasional disconnect between words and art.
Menacing and most likely to appeal to established fans of its co-creators. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9780062644695
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2025
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
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