A poetic example of Black male excellence to inspire an emerging generation of readers.
Weatherford celebrates the achievements of African American men, from Martin Luther King Jr. to Bootsy Collins.
The inspiration for this poetic offering began back in 2009, when 5-year-old Jacob Philadelphia met with then-president Barack Obama in the Oval Office. “I want to know if your hair is like mine,” said Jacob, right before President Obama bowed to allow him to touch his head—an image immortalized by photojournalist Pete Souza. An illustrated depiction of that moment appears in the book, along with scenes of other young Black children finding inspiration in a variety of role models. “I have hair like Obama’s,” the narrator tells us, “and hands like LeBron’s.” References to other recognizable and potentially lesser-known Black male inventors, athletes, artists, civic leaders, and more are threaded throughout. Writing in verse, Weatherford cleverly riffs on her subjects’ character traits and contributions, welcoming a new generation of readers to discover more about their legacies: “I think up inventions / just like the real McCoy.” “My voice is my instrument / like Trane’s sax and Bootsy’s bass.” (Backmatter explains that Weatherford is referring to engineer Elijah McCoy, jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, and funk musician Bootsy Collins.) Durr’s digital, animation-influenced illustrations brim with color as children race Usain Bolt, daydream about following in astronaut Guion Bluford’s footsteps, and more.
A poetic example of Black male excellence to inspire an emerging generation of readers. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781419771484
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.
Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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