A visually rich story that speaks truth to power for LGBTQ+ kids and their families and allies.
Like its protagonist, this thick picture book with an unusually small trim defies stereotype.
Demetrius, a queer Black kid whose “superpower” is “sensitivity,” feels “free” only before kindergarten. For years after that, schoolkids taunt Demetrius with homophobic slurs (represented with asterisks), and even some teachers bully Demetrius for wearing flowered clothes and giggling with girls. The unconditional acceptance of family feels far away as “scared [and] scarred” people terrorize the child. Demetrius’ fiercely protective mother confronts those who criticize her child’s gender expression, frequently with profanity (also asterisked in dialogue) and even in church, which she abandons after telling a woman there to mind her own business. During a church daydream, Demetrius converses midair with Black Jesus about love of all kinds—a conversation interrupted (still in the daydream) by Billy Porter, Tony winner for the Broadway musical Kinky Boots and Emmy winner for his role as Pray Tell in FX’s Pose, a drama about New York’s gender-norm–defying ballroom culture. Demetrius’ father also unfailingly affirms his child, as do some adults at school along with schoolmate and podcast partner Moxie, who’s also a queer kid of color. With minimal text per page, this book feels handmade, from the lettering to the eclectic collages, composed of photos, fabrics, hair, sequins, and more. Characters resemble paper dolls and often appear identical on consecutive pages, which sometimes creates an odd sense of stasis that slows the story’s momentum. Nevertheless, queer parents and kids alike will appreciate the book’s uplifting message.
A visually rich story that speaks truth to power for LGBTQ+ kids and their families and allies. (Picture book. 8-12)Pub Date: Jan. 26, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-948340-29-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Dottir Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2021
With young readers diagnosed with anxiety in ever increasing numbers, this book offers a necessary mirror to many.
Young Raina is 9 when she throws up for the first time that she remembers, due to a stomach bug. Even a year later, when she is in fifth grade, she fears getting sick.
Raina begins having regular stomachaches that keep her home from school. She worries about sharing food with her friends and eating certain kinds of foods, afraid of getting sick or food poisoning. Raina’s mother enrolls her in therapy. At first Raina isn’t sure about seeing a therapist, but over time she develops healthy coping mechanisms to deal with her stress and anxiety. Her therapist helps her learn to ground herself and relax, and in turn she teaches her classmates for a school project. Amping up the green, wavy lines to evoke Raina’s nausea, Telgemeier brilliantly produces extremely accurate visual representations of stress and anxiety. Thought bubbles surround Raina in some panels, crowding her with anxious “what if”s, while in others her negative self-talk appears to be literally crushing her. Even as she copes with anxiety disorder and what is eventually diagnosed as mild irritable bowel syndrome, she experiences the typical stresses of school life, going from cheer to panic in the blink of an eye. Raina is white, and her classmates are diverse; one best friend is Korean American.
With young readers diagnosed with anxiety in ever increasing numbers, this book offers a necessary mirror to many. (Graphic memoir. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-545-85251-7
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
Quirky and imaginative—postmodern storytelling at its best.
Friendly curiosity and a gift for naming earn a polar bear an assortment of (mostly animal) friends, adventures, mishaps, and discoveries.
Arriving at a northern ocean, Duane spies a shipwreck. Swimming out to investigate, he meets its lone occupant, C.C., a learned snowy owl whose noble goal is acquiring knowledge to apply “toward the benefit of all.” Informing Duane that he’s a polar bear, she points out a nearby cave that might suit him—it even has a mattress. Adding furnishings from the wreck—the grandfather clock’s handless, but who needs to tell time when it’s always now?—he meets a self-involved musk ox, entranced by his own reflection, who’s delighted when Duane names him “Handsome.” As he comes to understand, then appreciate their considerable diversity, Duane brings out the best in his new friends. C.C., who has difficulty reading emotions and dislikes being touched, evokes the autism spectrum. Magic, a bouncy, impulsive arctic fox, manifests ADHD. Major Puff, whose proud puffin ancestry involves courageous retreats from danger, finds a perfect companion in Twitch, a risk-aware, common-sensical hare. As illustrated, Sun Girl, a human child, appears vaguely Native, and Squint, a painter, white, but they’re sui generis: The Canadian author avoids referencing human culture. The art conveys warmth in an icy setting; animal characters suggest beloved stuffed toys, gently reinforcing the message that friendship founded on tolerance breeds comfort and safety.
Quirky and imaginative—postmodern storytelling at its best. (Animal fantasy. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5344-3341-0
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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