A cute story likely to inspire little yogis.
A little girl has fun learning to do simple yoga poses in Roman’s picture book.
Hallie joins her mother on a trip to the yoga studio, but to her dismay, she doesn’t get to come along for class. Instead, she has to stay in the kid’s room with Robin, the baby sitter. But while Hallie pouts, Robin has an idea: She demonstrates how to be a tree by standing on one leg and raising her arms in the air. “Trees are peaceful, quiet, and strong,” she explains. Hallie copies the moves and strikes the pose too. She also learns how to be a sleek airplane with outstretched arms, to flap her knees like a beautiful butterfly and to stretch out like a hissing cobra. The story is short—just seven pages of text—but sweet. Roman (Captain No Beard, 2012, etc.) uses simple language to begin to demystify an activity that may bewilder many young children. Uncomplicated but visually appealing illustrations make it easy for readers to try the four poses themselves. The skillful illustrations include details that exemplify a typical yoga studio: serene posters on the wall, mats and women exercising in class. While color highlights the main subjects on every page, a closer look at background images reveals amusing happenings: A giggling boy in the kid’s room uses a hand puppet to tease a playmate; a baby crawls on Robin while she’s sitting in the butterfly pose; and the mommies in class stand on their heads. The story includes a few basic but potentially new vocabulary words, such as “sleek,” “sole” and “cobra.” Hallie’s adventure conveys two subtle lessons: It’s fun to learn new things, and you don’t have to be a grown-up to do yoga. The very succinct book may introduce more questions about yoga than it answers, but the messages are clear.
A cute story likely to inspire little yogis.Pub Date: Dec. 24, 2012
ISBN: 978-1475015584
Page Count: 24
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Feb. 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A soothing, logical, and playful introduction to mindfulness for young listeners.
What can you do when things go wrong?
Two children contemplate different ways to calm themselves down in this straightforward introduction to breathing, relaxation, and mindfulness. The younger, White-presenting child follows suit when the older, brown-skinned child proposes imaginative calming techniques. They picture themselves as various animals (goldfish, elephants, dragons) and objects (pinwheels, dandelions, wind chimes, flowers), inhaling and exhaling, that make deep breathing and calming down concrete and easy to comprehend. Simplified, whimsical illustrations add a touch of humor and a wink to the 1970s while preventing the story from becoming cloying, as soft, gentle instructions help the characters (and listeners) to understand some of the mechanics behind how to intentionally breathe and decompress. While not necessarily something that children will pick up unless they are learning about practicing mindfulness, this informative title has charm and warmth and will give youngsters some ideas as to how to self-regulate and manage their feelings as they learn to be aware of their breathing. Endpapers feature a multiracial array of children’s faces expressing different emotions.
A soothing, logical, and playful introduction to mindfulness for young listeners. (author's note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 13, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-77164-637-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Greystone Kids
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
Echoes of Runaway Bunny color this exchange between a bath-averse piglet and his patient mother. Using a strategy that would probably be a nonstarter in real life, the mother deflects her stubborn offspring’s string of bath-free occupational conceits with appeals to reason: “Pirates NEVER EVER take baths!” “Pirates don’t get seasick either. But you do.” “Yeesh. I’m an astronaut, okay?” “Well, it is hard to bathe in zero gravity. It’s hard to poop and pee in zero gravity too!” And so on, until Mom’s enticing promise of treasure in the deep sea persuades her little Treasure Hunter to take a dive. Chunky figures surrounded by lots of bright white space in Segal’s minimally detailed watercolors keep the visuals as simple as the plotline. The language isn’t quite as basic, though, and as it rendered entirely in dialogue—Mother Pig’s lines are italicized—adult readers will have to work hard at their vocal characterizations for it to make any sense. Moreover, younger audiences (any audiences, come to that) may wonder what the piggy’s watery closing “EUREKA!!!” is all about too. Not particularly persuasive, but this might coax a few young porkers to get their trotters into the tub. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: March 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-25425-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: Jan. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© 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
