A helpful fable for libraries that caters to children with self-esteem issues.
A platypus can’t figure out where she fits among the other animals in this offbeat rhyming tale of self-acceptance by debut author Tran with co-illustrator Swaschnig.
A purple platypus baby cracks through a golden eggshell and waddles to a puddle to look at her reflection. Seeing her bill, she wonders if she belongs with the duck swimming nearby. But the duck has no interest in her. Downcast, the platypus digs a tunnel and encounters a mole. Could this be her family? No, the mole can’t even see aboveground. When the platypus sees a beaver’s tail, she’s no longer hopeful. But the beaver sees her potential, calling her an “interesting creature!” She teaches her to build structures and calls her Sharey, because she shares other animals’ features. Sharey starts to enjoy her own strengths and uniqueness. Tran’s rhymes aren’t presented in stanzas, so they can be difficult to scan, especially when there’s a change in rhythm. The message, however, is kinder than the one in “The Ugly Duckling,” as Sharey never goes through a transformation; she discovers that she has value just the way she is. Tran and Swaschnig’s brightly colored illustrations, featuring a cartoonish platypus, a snooty duck, and a sympathetic beaver, fit the text’s tone with spare compositions uncluttered by extra details.
A helpful fable for libraries that caters to children with self-esteem issues.Pub Date: May 31, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5434-1744-9
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Xlibris
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
What if the market was closed when you wanted to bake a pie? You could embark for Europe, learn Italian en route, and pick up some semolina wheat in Italy, an egg in France, kurundu bark for cinnamon in Sri Lanka, and an entire cow in England (butter) before coming home via Jamaica (sugar) and Vermont (apples). The expertly designed illustrations in which a dark-haired lass journeys by various means to these interesting places to get her groceries are lovely and lively, and the narrative, too, travels at a spritely pace. The journey is neither quite logical enough to be truly informative nor quite bizarre enough to be satisfyingly silly, while the rich, sweet recipe that's appended will take some adult assistance. Still, fun. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: May 2, 1994
ISBN: 0-679-83705-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1994
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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