A suitable guide to start the conversation about gun violence with children.
A young boy deals with anxiety centered on gun violence in his community.
When Miles’ father sits him and his brother down to inform them that their cousin Keisha—who’s been living with them while she attends college—has been shot and wounded during a concert at the neighborhood park, he starts to panic. Lost in this newfound worry, Miles begins to have trouble focusing in school, and his latest drawings have his teacher worried. Miles’ parents do their best to reassure him that although their neighborhood isn’t always safe, there are plenty of reasons why they shouldn’t move. As Miles’ family begins to move on, Miles is still battling his anxiety. One day, Keisha tells the family about the community efforts her friends are involved with to prevent more gun violence, prompting Miles’ parents to help. After seeing the results of his parents’ efforts at the park, Miles is compelled to inspire others with his unique set of skills. This simply stated story and the note to readers—chock-full of helpful prompts—could be useful to caregivers looking to help children through trauma. Although the majority of characters are Black, and their names are stereotypical, the authors clear up misconceptions by citing the disproportionate circumstances that lead to increases in community violence. Illustrations are reminiscent of newspaper comic strips, with wobbly lined color sketches that young artists would be inclined to replicate. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-16-inch double-page spreads viewed at 40.3% of actual size.)
A suitable guide to start the conversation about gun violence with children. (Picture book. 6-11)Pub Date: April 27, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4338-3521-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Magination/American Psychological Association
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
A funny and timely primer for budding activists.
Problems are afoot at Emily Dickinson Elementary School, and it’s up to Bea Garcia to gather the troops and fight.
Bea Garcia and her best friend, Judith Einstein, sit every day under the 250-year-old oak tree in their schoolyard and imagine a face in its trunk. They name it “Emily” after their favorite American poet. Bea loves to draw both real and imagined pictures of their favorite place—the squirrels in the tree, the branches that reach for the sky, the view from the canopy even though she’s never climbed that high. Until the day a problem boy does climb that high, pelting the kids with acorns and then getting stuck. Bert causes such a scene that the school board declares Emily a nuisance and decides to chop it down. Bea and Einstein rally their friends with environmental facts, poetry, and artwork to try to convince the adults in their lives to change their minds. Bea must enlist Bert if she wants her plan to succeed. Can she use her imagination and Bert’s love of monsters to get him in line? In Bea’s fourth outing, Zemke gently encourages her protagonist to grow from an artist into an activist. Her energy and passion spill from both her narration and her frequent cartoons, which humorously extend the text. Spanish-speaking Bea’s Latinx, Einstein and Bert present white, and their classmates are diverse.
A funny and timely primer for budding activists. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 6-9)Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-7352-2941-9
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Lighthearted spook with a heaping side of silliness—and hair.
Fifth graders get into a hairy situation.
After an unnamed narrator’s full-page warning, readers dive right into a Wolver Hollow classroom. Mr. Noffler recounts the town legend about how, every Oct. 19, residents don fake mustaches and lock their doors. As the story goes, the late Bockius Beauregard was vaporized in an “unfortunate black powder incident,” but, somehow, his “magnificent mustache” survived to haunt the town. Once a year, the spectral ’stache searches for an exposed upper lip to rest upon. Is it real or superstition? Students Parker and Lucas—sole members of the Midnight Owl Detective Agency—decide to take the case and solve the mustache mystery. When they find that the book of legends they need for their research has been checked out from the library, they recruit the borrower: goth classmate Samantha von Oppelstein. Will the three of them be enough to take on the mustache and resolve its ghostly, unfinished business? Whether through ridiculous plot points or over-the-top descriptions, the comedy keeps coming in this first title in McGee’s new Night Frights series. A generous font and spacing make this quick-paced, 13-chapter story appealing to newly confident readers. Skaffa’s grayscale cartoon spot (and occasional full-page) illustrations help set the tone and accentuate the action. Though neither race or skin color is described in the text, images show Lucas and Samantha as light-skinned and Parker as dark-skinned.
Lighthearted spook with a heaping side of silliness—and hair. (maps) (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-8089-6
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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