Carmen’s moxie still charms, even when Eduardo is stealing the show.
Dramatic triple threat–in-training Carmen returns in another story of sibling love and sharing the spotlight.
Since putting on her big home stage show in Starring Carmen! (2017), things appear to be going great for young actress/singer/director Carmen and her adoring little brother, Eduardo. When Carmen decides to turn her attention to the big time by submitting an entry to a contest for a Dino-Krispies cereal commercial, she names Eduardo cinematographer (“What’s a cinnamon-tographer?” he asks). She puts together a showstopping dance number, but it’s cute Eduardo in a dino costume who gets the ad agency’s attention. Carmen must, of course, overcome her emotions without displaying bitterness toward Eduardo, who offers to turn down the gig. For readers of the first book, it’ll come as no surprise that Carmen won’t let that happen, and she shows some growth since then in how quickly she becomes a cheerleader for her brother. Soon, Carmen is seeking career opportunities in talent management. What the Carmen books do well is treat the overeager enthusiasm of Carmen with compassion: Her dreams aren’t presented as unrealistic or irritating to her bilingual, interracial, Latinx family; her parents and brother enjoy her performances. The illustrations throughout capture great human moments in the characters’ expressions, the way they stand, dance, and move, and the ebullient mass of purple hair on Carmen’s (and her mother’s) head.
Carmen’s moxie still charms, even when Eduardo is stealing the show. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 11, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-3169-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
A bit message-heavy and twee, but feline fans will show up.
Spinach wants to fit in with the other kittens (and secretly dreams of being a superkitty).
Because of a malformed chest, Spinach can’t play like the other kittens in the shelter. She longs for a blue card on her kennel, which means a cat is bound for Foreverland. Instead, she’s whisked away to a strange room full of humans in white coats, where she learns that she has a condition called pectus excavatum. When she awakens after an operation, she finds a plate on her chest and believes it gives her superpowers. She’s moved to Fosterland, where she meets another kitten called Chickpea, who looks up to Spinach. The duo escape their enclosure, avoid a giant human, and discover a group of kittens trapped in a strange machine. Can they rescue the kittens? And what happens when Spinach’s chest plate vanishes? The second in cat rescuer and internet personality Shaw’s series is mostly unconnected to the first. The cats use words and concepts they could not have encountered in their lives while misunderstanding others for effect and plot (Spinach knows what a lasso and ice cubes are but thinks that a cat carrier is a hovercraft). The can-do message is repeated to the point of didacticism. Experienced chapter readers may be put off. Upping the sweetness quotient, Johnson’s adorable, black-and-white full-page and spot illustrations are a plus.
A bit message-heavy and twee, but feline fans will show up. (information about the real Spinach and Chickpea) (Fiction. 5-7)Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-66590-125-3
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An honest look at motherhood in the contemporary era and a sweet tribute to the bond between mother and child.
Grammy-winning, multiplatinum singer/songwriter Rowland teams up with California teacher McKay to celebrate busy moms.
This picture book highlights a mother’s frequent longing to be with her child when life’s demands pull them apart. The story takes us through a busy Black mom’s week: She goes to work (at a construction site where she appears to be an engineer), works from home on her son’s sick day, takes him to a museum, and shares domestic duties with her Black male partner, who is a nurse. She encounters many bumps in the road that will be familiar to working parents. Each day, she gently reassures her son with a lyrical refrain: “Always with you, / Always with me, / Mommy and child / Together we’ll be.” This tender story, narrated in the voice of a mother addressing her child, pulls at the heartstrings. Liem’s digital artwork uses a warm palette and has a calming quality. The characters’ body language and heartfelt facial expressions are spot-on. This book will resonate with any mom who knows the heartache of having to say goodbye to their child or who has faced the teary-eyed frustration of a youngster experiencing separation anxiety. Young readers, on the other hand, will find solace in the reassuring narrative. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An honest look at motherhood in the contemporary era and a sweet tribute to the bond between mother and child. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: April 26, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-46551-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
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