In a novel that is hardly more difficult than an easy reader (though longer), the Beans are a typical Byars family: Papa sells fruits and vegetables; they live in an apartment house from which they wave at neighbors across the street; and they are distinguished by their common-sense and love for one another rather than by their cleverness. Sensibly, no one is allowed on the roof, which is reserved for a neighbor's rabbits and the laundry; but today Anna Bean is up there—with permission—writing a poem to be included in a book being compiled at school. Soon the other Bean children join her—they too will write poems. George wants to write "the best poem in the world," but has trouble with writer's block; Little Jenny's brief poem comes more easily. Even Mrs. Bean produces a poem—not great, she says, "but it is a true one." Anna is proud of her own effort, but it is not picked for the book after all; still, as her father points out, the important thing is that she was the first Bean to write a poem; if she goes on writing, one may yet be in a book. The way Byars can explore a loving family—and the act of creation—through such a simple device is little short of miraculous. She holds attention; she makes every word count; she devises believable, childlike verse—and does it all with a clear eye, a gently amused voice, and disarming affection. Young readers should be delighted.
Pub Date: Oct. 4, 1988
ISBN: 0440403146
Page Count: 84
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1988
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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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