WHEN A BOOK BEGINS

Verses to brighten gloomy times, even for a forgetful flower, a cranky crow, and a depressed pastry.

Dashielle offers sweet relief for both readers and the subjects of her poems, from a holeless buttermilk doughnut feeling as “flat as a pancake” to a lost and confused flower suffering an identity crisis (“Am I a tulip? Or maybe a poppy? / Am I original or maybe a copy?”)—and for anyone else who’s likewise down, such as the sad-looking, dark-skinned child in the opening illustration. For that youngster, at least, riding in a car with a reckless canine driver who howls out the “Bow Wow Blues” elicits a smile. Alternatively, and more feasibly for many, finding that clouds are good listeners lightens the mood of a grumpy crow in one poem, keeping busy indoors in another staves off boredom when “rain reigns” outside, and a glance into a mirror pool along with a hug from Mom is just what that little flower needs to become properly (and literally) grounded. The poet’s generally simple language and unforced rhymes lend readability to the verses, and in Alarcon’s illustrations, a racially diverse cast of children and adults mingles cozily with scenes of flora, fauna, and (as mentioned) pastry…all with human faces.

Sensitive, sympathetic, and imaginative.