A steadfast hymn from daughter to mother.
Grammy Award–winning musician Chiquis draws from personal experience for the story of a grief-stricken girl rediscovering her voice.
The child works in the garden alongside her abuelita. Among the flowers and Abuelita’s honeybees, the young gardener recalls her late mother’s wise words: “Whenever you have a problem, sing in this garden.” Memories flood back: gardening with Momma, watching her mother perform before adoring crowds, and, above all, singing songs together. But sorrow silences the girl’s voice now. At her new school, bullies disparagingly point out that her budding vocal talents don’t measure up to her mother’s renowned singing prowess. As summer passes in Abuelita’s garden, the girl notices one “busy and unafraid” bee who works harder than the others. Moved by the bee’s efforts, the little singer rekindles her passion for singing. Soon, summer ends, the bee retreats underground, and the girl feels buoyed by her mother’s songs. This serene tale of hope amid grief hits the right notes. Inspired by her childhood as the daughter of Mexican American banda music singer Jenni Rivera (who died in 2012), her experiences being bullied at school, and her own musical success, Chiquis—with an assist from co-author Norman—merges an encouraging message of renewed inner strength with a poignant tribute to her mother, complemented by Rodríguez’s cozy artwork.
A steadfast hymn from daughter to mother. (author’s note) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 15, 2025
ISBN: 9781250322999
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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
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