EVEN STEVEN

Following Don’t Hug Doug (2021), Finison and Wiseman’s latest explores a familiar challenge through the eyes of a child.

Steven loves to share, and he wants everything to be divided equally. Unfortunately, not all objects can be broken in two like a cookie or passed around like a jar of pickles. You certainly can’t split a nickel, sharing a lollipop among lickers really isn’t advised, and a book absolutely shouldn’t be destroyed so that everyone gets the same number of pages. Equal can mean taking turns, like on the playground slide. Equal can mean working in tandem, like a group of kids playing together with a shared set of blocks. But sometimes equal isn’t fair—everyone might get a turn at the same bicycle, but it won’t fit every kid. Thankfully, flexibility leads to a fun solution when Steven and his friends jump on skateboards and tricycles and don roller skates to ride together. The final few pages present readers with a puzzle: how to share everything from a hula hoop to the planet. Finison and Wiseman present a surprisingly complex subject in a way that’s fresh, fun, and entirely creative. An excellent catalyst for classroom discussions, the book is sure to provoke giggles while getting kids to consider equity in an age-appropriate way—no mean feat. In Wiseman’s agreeably chaotic cartoon art, Steven is tan-skinned and red-haired; his friends are diverse.

Superb conversation starters for youngsters who fret about fairness—in other words, all kids.