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FIND THE SUN

Name: FIND THE SUN
Author: Andy Harkness
ISBN: 9781547618767

by Andy Harkness ; illustrated by Andy Harkness ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2026

A visually engrossing representation of feelings in flux.

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A young boy finds a way to face his fears.

Brown-haired, olive-skinned Eddie hates Mondays. He worriedly watches a rainstorm through the window and crawls back into bed with his stuffed yellow bunny. When he opens his eyes again, his bed is gone (an indicator he’s dipped into a dreamscape), but the rain remains (“the sky growled…the air rumbled, low and loud”), and his body reacts in kind: “His tummy twisted. His eyes stung.” Soon, his rabbit appears, larger than life, encouraging Eddie to come along to “find the sun.” A magnificent journey begins as the pair swoop through storm clouds, float down a sparkling river, and head into a “deep and dark” cave. Eddie is scared, but Rabbit assures him that “It’s only in the darkest of dark…that we shine the brightest.” The cave contains shimmering stars, a magnificent moon, and a beautiful garden maze at the river’s end. By moving through fear with a comforting companion beside him, Eddie finds himself ready to face the day. Harkness’ prose has a careful, reflective cadence, but as in previous work, his illustration technique takes center stage—digitally rendered sculpture with the tremendously tactile appeal of molding clay. Color selections set the mood—stormy blue-blacks give way to calmer azure hues and creamy clouds before finally shifting into rich, exultant greens.

A visually engrossing representation of feelings in flux. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: May 5, 2026

ISBN: 9781547618767

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2026

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2026

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
WOLFBOY IS SCARED
by Andy Harkness ; illustrated by Andy Harkness

- BOOK REVIEW
WOLFBOY
by Andy Harkness ; illustrated by Andy Harkness

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.

The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
A PERFECT PLACE TO PLAY
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Jim Valeri

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)