A realistic and well-illustrated dance tale for young readers.
Ballas and Orlovsky’s illustrated children’s book offers an insider’s peek into the dancing world as youngsters leave their families to live, learn, and train with champions.
Chloe, a talented, 10-year-old Canadian dancer, goes from Toronto to London, England, to be taught by “champion dancers” Mr. and Mrs. Spin. Her 12-year-old brother, George, is already a student there. Readers join Chloe as she rides to the dance studio in a taxi: “Chloe’s heart was beating so loud and she could feel butterflies dancing in her tummy.” However, once she arrives, she’s surprised by the old, unglamorous building that houses the studio. Then Mr. Spin asks her to dance a cha-cha with his son, Alex, who’s her age but a much better dancer than she is. This shakes her confidence, and she runs off to the dressing room; George finds Chloe in tears and gives her a pep talk. Several elements make this children’s book notable, including Estrada’s colorful, painterly illustrations, which are bright and sparkle with light that gleams off various surfaces. They support the events of the text well and highlight the glamour of dance. The lively typeface also adds to the story’s dancelike flow. At the end, Estrada also clearly draws the steps of the cha-cha, which will allow readers to perform it themselves. Orlovsky and Ballas, both professional dancers, draw upon their skills to make this story authentic. Young dancers, in particular, will find it delightful, and it may inspire them in their own personal goals. Throughout, the story’s message that hard work pays off is clear.
A realistic and well-illustrated dance tale for young readers.Pub Date: June 7, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-63755-283-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Mascot Kids
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode.
A long-running series reaches its closing chapters.
Having, as Kline notes in her warm valedictory acknowledgements, taken 30 years to get through second and third grade, Harry Spooger is overdue to move on—but not just into fourth grade, it turns out, as his family is moving to another town as soon as the school year ends. The news leaves his best friend, narrator “Dougo,” devastated…particularly as Harry doesn’t seem all that fussed about it. With series fans in mind, the author takes Harry through a sort of last-day-of-school farewell tour. From his desk he pulls a burned hot dog and other items that featured in past episodes, says goodbye to Song Lee and other classmates, and even (for the first time ever) leads Doug and readers into his house and memento-strewn room for further reminiscing. Of course, Harry isn’t as blasé about the move as he pretends, and eyes aren’t exactly dry when he departs. But hardly is he out of sight before Doug is meeting Mohammad, a new neighbor from Syria who (along with further diversifying a cast that began as mostly white but has become increasingly multiethnic over the years) will also be starting fourth grade at summer’s end, and planning a written account of his “horrible” buddy’s exploits. Finished illustrations not seen.
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Nov. 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-451-47963-1
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Sept. 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018
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