by Ariane Hofmann-Maniyar ; illustrated by Ariane Hofmann-Maniyar ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 15, 2020
Clever fun carries a sweet feel-good message about real, true, loving friendships.
Two little neighbors are best friends who love to play and do things together—until things change.
A tea-party disaster leads to blame, recrimination, and an end to their good times. Each claims to have lots of other friends, so they don’t really need each other. To prove this, each literally makes a bunch of creatively designed friends from found objects. But Max and Xam learn that there can be no fun with these inanimate friends, and they quickly realize how much they miss each other. Atonement gifts are exchanged, and happiness ensues. Hofmann-Maniyar employs straightforward, simple language, accessible to even the youngest readers or listeners. Literal-minded little readers will immediately get the delightful wordplay and take it to heart. The text, rarely more than one sentence per page, is carefully placed relative to the illustrations, with both the explosive argument and the final reconciliation shouted in huge, messy lettering. Minutely detailed illustrations in shades of blue and purple, with lots of white space interspersed, move and enhance the tale and provide lots of laughs and surprises. Bean-shaped Max and Xam, whose names do not indicate gender, are also of unknown species. Max is in blue fur with orange hands and feet. Xam is orange with rabbitlike ears and blue-clawed hands and feet. They both have stark white faces with flat, black features and pink-dot cheeks.
Clever fun carries a sweet feel-good message about real, true, loving friendships. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: May 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-78628-087-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Child's Play
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2020
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by Pip Jones ; illustrated by Sara Ogilvie ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2020
A disappointing follow-up.
Inventor Izzy Gizmo is back in this sequel to her eponymous debut (2017).
While busily inventing one day, Izzy receives an invitation from the Genius Guild to their annual convention. Though Izzy’s “inventions…don’t always work,” Grandpa (apparently her sole caregiver) encourages her to go. The next day they undertake a long journey “over fields, hills, and waves” and “mile after mile” to isolated Technoff Isle. There, Izzy finds she must compete against four other kids to create the most impressive machine. The colorful, detail-rich illustrations chronicle how poor Izzy is thwarted at every turn by Abi von Lavish, a Veruca Salt–esque character who takes all the supplies for herself. But when Abi abandons her project, Izzy salvages the pieces and decides to take Grandpa’s advice to create a machine that “can really be put to good use.” A frustrated Izzy’s impatience with a friend almost foils her chance at the prize, but all’s well that ends well. There’s much to like: Brown-skinned inventor girl Izzy is an appealing character, it’s great to see a nurturing brown-skinned male caregiver, the idea of an “Invention Convention” is fun, and a sustainable-energy invention is laudable. However, these elements don’t make up for rhymes that often feel forced and a lackluster story.
A disappointing follow-up. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-164-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2020
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by Tom Percival ; illustrated by Tom Percival ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 3, 2019
A valuable asset to the library of a child who experiences anxiety and a great book to get children talking about their...
Ruby is an adventurous and happy child until the day she discovers a Worry.
Ruby barely sees the Worry—depicted as a blob of yellow with a frowny unibrow—at first, but as it hovers, the more she notices it and the larger it grows. The longer Ruby is affected by this Worry, the fewer colors appear on the page. Though she tries not to pay attention to the Worry, which no one else can see, ignoring it prevents her from enjoying the things that she once loved. Her constant anxiety about the Worry causes the bright yellow blob to crowd Ruby’s everyday life, which by this point is nearly all washes of gray and white. But at the playground, Ruby sees a boy sitting on a bench with a growing sky-blue Worry of his own. When she invites the boy to talk, his Worry begins to shrink—and when Ruby talks about her own Worry, it also grows smaller. By the book’s conclusion, Ruby learns to control her Worry by talking about what worries her, a priceless lesson for any child—or adult—conveyed in a beautifully child-friendly manner. Ruby presents black, with hair in cornrows and two big afro-puff pigtails, while the boy has pale skin and spiky black hair.
A valuable asset to the library of a child who experiences anxiety and a great book to get children talking about their feelings (. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0237-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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