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BENEATH

Name: BENEATH
Author: Cori Doerrfeld
ISBN: 978-0-316-31226-4

by Cori Doerrfeld ; illustrated by Cori Doerrfeld ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 17, 2023

No need to scratch beneath the surface of this text to find the glint of gold. It’s apparent right from the start.

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A tender, probing appreciation of what lies just below the surface.

Tucked beneath a quilt in the center of the bed, Finn is having a horrible day. “Grandpa wanted to talk about it. Finn did not.” The child is quite certain that Grandpa won’t understand, but the old man convinces Finn to take a walk with him (still under the quilt) and is soon pointing out instances where what’s on the surface conceals hidden complexities—trees with deep roots, for instance, and water teeming with fish. “Beneath appearances are experiences. Beneath actions are explanations. Beneath what’s different is what’s the same,” he says. As Finn slowly emerges from the quilt, Grandpa ties it all together: “Beneath someone who looks like they won’t understand…is someone who knows exactly how you feel.” As in her The Rabbit Listened (2018), Doerrfeld has crafted another brief yet incisive picture book. Here, her cozy yet vibrant art advocates for understanding and acceptance alongside the artist’s unique brand of straightforward simplicity. Grandpa’s tour begins big (with nature) and seems to narrow in focus (with an exploration of emotions), but Doerrfeld caps the book off brilliantly with Finn pointing out the cosmic stars above. “Don’t worry…I’ll remember to think of what’s beneath”—a breathtaking clincher. Grandpa and Finn are both tan-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

No need to scratch beneath the surface of this text to find the glint of gold. It’s apparent right from the start. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Jan. 17, 2023

ISBN: 978-0-316-31226-4

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Little, Brown

Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
BEDSLIME BLUES
by Kris Tarantino ; illustrated by Cori Doerrfeld

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NELLIE'S BIG SPLASH
by Cori Doerrfeld ; illustrated by Cori Doerrfeld

- BOOK REVIEW
GOODNIGHT SCHOOL
by Catherine Bailey ; illustrated by Cori Doerrfeld

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK LOST AND FOUND

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 18, 2026

Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed.

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Beep! Beep! Beep! Toad and Little Blue Truck get ready for a hayride.

After the titular vehicle is loaded with hay, Toad is nowhere to be found. “Beep! Beep! Beep! Where are you, Toad?” asks Little Blue Truck. All the barnyard animals look for him. Sheep searches the meadow. Goose and Duck check the pond. Others pitch in, too, but Toad seems to have disappeared…until Hen hears snoring coming from the pile of hay in the back of Little Blue Truck. Although the text’s scansion is imperfect in places (adults may want to pre-read to ensure a smooth read-aloud), the bouncy meter and rhyming text nevertheless capture the energy of the search and the farmyard community’s concern for Toad’s safety, making this a solid storytime choice. Eye-catching illustrations with rich, fully saturated colors balance the right level of detail while still highlighting the animal that is the focus of each verse. By introducing one farm animal at a time, Schertle also helps the youngest readers begin to identify barnyard animals by name and understand their unique farm homes. Traditional animal sounds are part of the text, and listeners will add them to their vocabulary. It all ends with the promised hayride, bringing the tale to a joyous ending.

Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2026

ISBN: 9780063436121

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: July 20, 2026

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK AND RACER RED
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK MAKES A FRIEND
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry

- BOOK REVIEW
TIME FOR SCHOOL, LITTLE BLUE TRUCK
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)