A flop.
Children are invited to play by slipping pink or blue-and-white tights on their fingers, putting them through die-cut holes in either or both of the female and male leads, and dancing to scenes from six ballet classics.
Each ballet is represented by one double-page spread. Coppélia (incorrectly spelled “Coppèlia”), the titular doll, dances for Dr. Coppelius. Cinderella and her prince perform steps at a ball. Solor flies high in La Bayadère. The Snow Queen pirouettes for the King. Romeo and Juliette turn and step, and, finally, a swan dances for a prince. The ballets are not named, and while Cinderella and an enchanted swan may be familiar to very young readers, La Bayadère, a Russian ballet set in India, Romeo and Juliette, based on the Shakespeare play about doomed lovers, and The Snow Queen, based on the Hans Christian Andersen tale, most likely are not. All the dancers—some white and some brown-skinned—are round-faced with big eyes and blushing cheeks. It is not clear what the suggested activity can actually accomplish without any accompanying music or background information on the ballets. The steps that appear in the text in boldface (“relevés,” “battements,” “attitude turn,” etc.) are not explained and are difficult if not impossible to mimic using fingers. Furthermore, in addition to the occasional typo, there is a maddening plot mistake in the brief text: It is not the “lead swan,” Odette, who performs the 32 “fouettés” in Swan Lake; it is the Black Swan.
A flop. (Novelty board book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-64170-155-6
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Familius
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Warmly buoyant.
A Black family of four enjoys a day at the pool.
Readers may recognize two of the family members from Bolling and Juanita’s Together We Ride (2022), which centered on a father teaching his young daughter to ride a bike. This latest takes a similar tack, as the mother now helps her young son learn to swim. The child is uncertain, but with her encouragement, he dips a toe into the water and picks up the fundamentals: lifting his head above the water, floating, pumping his arms and legs. There are snafus along the way—the child initially sinks, but Mom is right there. Finally the boy strikes out to swim, “On my own, / in the zone.” The whole family is reassuring, cheering the child on. Big sister does the backstroke and a handstand, displaying the confidence the little one is still learning. Brief but upbeat rhyming verses will especially appeal to beginning readers. Juanita’s carefully composed, muted line illustrations shine in the details, from swim bonnets on Mom and big sister to a mermaid tattoo on Dad’s side. Touching moments in the art pair well with the text. Black family pride and joy abound—this is a family that allows its little ones the space to make forays into independence while supporting them every step of the way. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Warmly buoyant. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2023
ISBN: 9781797212494
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
A quiet book about making a giant leap.
Lottie knows something no one else knows. Her mother and brother don’t know. Her swimming instructor does not know, and the other children in swim class certainly don’t know.
There is a shark that lives in the pool. It wants to eat Lottie—only Lottie—and Lottie is not going to let it get anywhere near her. Most children have had moments when they’ve sat on the sidelines watching others laugh and play because they were too scared to just dive in, and that is precisely where Lottie finds herself. Lucky for her, Walter shows up just in time. He sings, they read books, play in bubbles, and even share the same favorite food. But when it comes time for Lottie to face her fears, can Walter truly help? Walter, as readers and Lottie see but her family may not, is an enormous walrus. Walker’s soft and appropriately watery illustrations complement and extend her whimsical text, lending a dreamlike feel to the story. Readers will discern the shadowy, predatory shape of the shark below the surface of the water even as Lottie’s classmates splash and play, and they will sympathize, and they will giggle at the depictions of Walter’s huge bulk in Lottie’s tidy urban home while believing that Walter will protect her. Lottie, her mother, and her brother have light-brown skin and black hair.
A quiet book about making a giant leap. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: May 7, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-328-47038-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
