Dedicated viewers of the show will be thrilled with the book. Other readers might enjoy it more with Grover around to act it...
The best way to experience this book is to find someone who does a really good Grover impression for a read-aloud.
Grover has one of the most distinctive voices in the history of children’s television, and all Sesame Street fans will hear that voice in their heads as soon as they pick up the book. The authors have captured his speech pattern perfectly. The book is full of phrases like “Hello everybodeee!” and “I am so confused!” People who aren’t familiar with the show may find the plot slight and episodic: Grover lands at the airport in Israel and trades his dollars for shekels. Grover takes part in a camel race with Bedouins. It’s an informative-enough guide to Israel (though the section on Masada carefully leaves out its violent military history), and Grover is always getting into trouble in entertaining ways. (“Camels,” he says, “can be very rude.”) Leigh also draws very funny pictures of livestock, and he depicts the Sesame Street characters with loving fidelity. But none of that stops Grover’s travels from feeling slightly aimless.
Dedicated viewers of the show will be thrilled with the book. Other readers might enjoy it more with Grover around to act it out. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7613-7558-6
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Kar-Ben
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2015
With a universal message of love and community, this book offers a beautiful representation of a too-often-overlooked...
From a debut author-and-illustrator team comes a glimpse into a young American Muslim girl’s family and community as she walks around in “Mommy’s khimar,” or headscarf.
The star of this sunny picture book is a young girl who finds joy in wearing her mother’s khimar, imagining it transforms her into a queen, a star, a mama bird, a superhero. At the core of the story is the love between the girl and her mother. The family appears to be African-American, with brown skin and textured hair. The girl’s braids and twists “form a bumpy crown” under the khimar, which smells of coconut oil and cocoa butter. Adults in her life delight in her appearance in the bright yellow khimar, including her Arabic teacher at the mosque, who calls it a “hijab,” and her grandmother, who visits after Sunday service and calls out “Sweet Jesus!” as she scoops her granddaughter into her arms. Her grandmother is, apparently, a Christian, but “We are a family and we love each other just the same.” The illustrations feature soft pastel colors with dynamic lines and gently patterned backgrounds that complement the story’s joyful tone. The words are often lyrical, and the story artfully includes many cultural details that will delight readers who share the cheerful protagonist’s culture and enlighten readers who don’t.
With a universal message of love and community, this book offers a beautiful representation of a too-often-overlooked cultural group . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 3, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5344-0059-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018
Both a celebration of and an introduction to the mosque.
Children welcome readers into different mosques to learn about varying activities and services that take place in them.
Though many different mosques and children are depicted, the voices call readers’ attention to the similarities among Muslim communities around the world. Yuksel highlights the community eating together; women, men, and children sharing the space and praying together; grandfathers thumbing their tasbihs; grandmothers reading the Quran; aunties giving hugs; children playing. The effect is to demonstrate that a mosque is more than just a building but rather a space where children and adults come together to pray, give, learn, and play. Joyful characters describe what happens in simple, poetic language: “In my mosque, the muezzin’s call to prayer echoes in the air. I stand shoulder to shoulder with my friends, linked like one long chain.” Aly’s bright illustrations pair well with Yuksel’s words, ending with a beautiful spread of children staring at readers, waving and extending their hands: “You are welcome in my mosque.” The variety of mosques included suggests that each has its own unique architecture, but repeating geometric patterns and shapes underscore that there are similarities too. The author’s note guides readers to her website for more information on the mosques depicted; they are not labeled, which is frustrating since the backmatter also includes a tantalizing list of famous mosques on every continent except Antarctica.
Both a celebration of and an introduction to the mosque. (glossary, sources) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 23, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-297870-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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