A superbly original picture book that celebrates memories big and small.
A young girl of South Asian descent and her family collect treasured memories.
When Mama comes home with an empty jar, Zuni imagines filling it with cookies. But this jar is meant for something even more special: memories. When Zuni’s brother Adam scores a winning goal for his soccer team, he puts a photo of the triumphant moment in the jar. Then Zuni’s sister Sophie gives a well-received piano performance, and their grandmother’s quilt wins a blue ribbon in a local competition. Mementos of these events go in the jar alongside the ribbon Mama earns for completing a Turkey Trot race. But what about Zuni? Throughout the year, her family reassures her that she, too, will soon earn achievements worthy of the jar. It isn’t until they review their memories that the family opens the jar and realizes that, unbeknownst to them, Zuni has been making her own memories from bits and pieces of life her elders were too busy to notice, value, or understand. Zuni’s story is expertly paced, elegantly written, and perfectly plotted. The book’s clever twist is supported by subtle clues in the upbeat cartoon illustrations. Perhaps the most impressive part of the story is its message—while it’s important to mark big achievements, Saeed encourages children and their families to see everyday moments as extraordinary, too.
A superbly original picture book that celebrates memories big and small. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: June 11, 2024
ISBN: 9780593618950
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Kokila
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2024
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
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BOOK REVIEW
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
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BOOK REVIEW
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