Next book

MEMORY GARDEN

Beautiful though potentially perplexing musings on immigration, family, and home.

An immigrant grandmother and her grandchild sow family history alongside newly planted flowers.

Nana and the young narrator are planting a new crop of geraniums. The protagonist loves packing dirt with the yellow shovel, but nothing’s better than hearing Nana tell stories of her childhood garden “back home.” As the narrator waters and helps plant new blooms, Nana describes cypress trees that looked like soldiers, flowers that smelled like perfume, a hedgehog that, after being thrown into the water by Nana’s friend, turned out to be a good swimmer, and the family gardener, who gave her rides in a wheelbarrow. Nana pensively reminisces about her family samovar, prompting the protagonist to ask what happened to Nana’s garden. Cryptically, Nana replies, “We had to leave it…When we moved to this country, it was time to plant a whole new garden.” Though the author and illustrator both discuss their Persian heritage in the backmatter, the narrative itself never states where Nana is from or why she can’t return; children may be left confused. Still, this tale deftly invokes the delight of growing something new while preserving old memories and traditions. Amber-toned illustrations and lyrical, child-friendly text paint a poetic picture of both the present and the past. Nana and the child are tan-skinned.

Beautiful though potentially perplexing musings on immigration, family, and home. (Picture book. 3-8)

Pub Date: Feb. 27, 2024

ISBN: 9781250843036

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Godwin Books

Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024

Next book

CARPENTER'S HELPER

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

Next book

HOW TO CATCH A MAMASAURUS

From the How To Catch… series

A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series.

Another creature is on the loose.

The long-running series continues its successful formula with this Hallmark card of a book, which features bright illustrations and catchy rhymes. This time, the mythical creature the racially diverse children set out to catch is an absent mom who does it all (lists of descriptors include the words banker, caregiver, nurse, doctor, driver, chef, housekeeper, teacher, entertainer, playmate, laundry service, problem solver, handywoman, cleaner, and alarm clock) but doesn’t seem to have a job outside the home and is inexplicably a dinosaur. As the children prepare gifts and a meal for her, the text becomes an ode to the skills the Mamasaurus possesses (“Day or night she’s always there. / She meets every wish and need”) and values she instills (“Sometimes life can mean hard work,” “kindness matters,” and “what counts is doing your best”). This well-intentioned selection veers into cliche generously sprinkled with saccharine but manages to redeem itself with its appreciation for mothers and all that they may do. Endpapers include a “to” and “from” page framed in a heart, as well as a page where young gift givers or recipients can draw a picture of their Mamasaurus.

A syrupy tribute to mothers that may please fans of the series. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: March 5, 2024

ISBN: 9781728274300

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland

Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024

Close Quickview