Six babies populate these six poems, paeans to the momentous events of baby life: first steps, a bath, going out in the carriage, getting teeth, going to bed. Asking, “what shall you chew?” for “Baby Teeth” the narrator notes fondly, “How about some building blocks? / I think you love those most.” The verses fall gently upon the ear, and Goode’s watercolor, pencil and gouache pictures—squiggly babies and softly hued mamas, dads, grandparents—gambol on white backgrounds. Dogs, cats, toys and favorite blankets also figure prominently. These are definitely baby-rocking rhymes for parents, babysitters or older siblings to read aloud to the giggling bundle of joy in their charge. A few have the potential of memorization with a chance of becoming a familiar family favorite. (Picture book. 0-3)
Pub Date: March 4, 2008
ISBN: 978-1-4169-4909-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2008
Categories: CHILDREN'S POETRY
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Poet Alexander deftly reveals the power of the format to pack an emotional punch.
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Basketball-playing twins find challenges to their relationship on and off the court as they cope with changes in their lives.
Josh Bell and his twin, Jordan, aka JB, are stars of their school basketball team. They are also successful students, since their educator mother will stand for nothing else. As the two middle schoolers move to a successful season, readers can see their differences despite the sibling connection. After all, Josh has dreadlocks and is quiet on court, and JB is bald and a trash talker. Their love of the sport comes from their father, who had also excelled in the game, though his championship was achieved overseas. Now, however, he does not have a job and seems to have health problems the parents do not fully divulge to the boys. The twins experience their first major rift when JB is attracted to a new girl in their school, and Josh finds himself without his brother. This novel in verse is rich in character and relationships. Most interesting is the family dynamic that informs so much of the narrative, which always reveals, never tells. While Josh relates the story, readers get a full picture of major and minor players. The basketball action provides energy and rhythm for a moving story.
Poet Alexander deftly reveals the power of the format to pack an emotional punch. (Verse fiction. 9-12)Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-10771-7
Page Count: 240
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 18, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
Categories: CHILDREN'S POETRY | CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS
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Brooks’s gloriously universal celebration of African-American childhood here receives a respectful and joyous treatment from one of the pre-eminent illustrators of the same. Readers coming to “Narcissa,” “Beulah at Church” and “Marie Lucille” for the first time will discover them accompanied by Ringgold’s trademark folk-art interpretations, the expressive brown figures depicted for the most part as vignettes against bright backgrounds. They show a Bronzeville that bustles with activity, single-family homes sharing the streets with apartment buildings and the occasional vacant lot. The children run, braids and arms out straight, and contemplate in turns, their exuberance tempered by the solemnity of childhood. While it’s regrettable that occasionally the specificity of the illustration robs a verse of its universality—the “special place” referenced in “Keziah” is shown to be underneath the kitchen table, for instance—the overall ebullience of the images more than compensates. There is a drop of truth in every single playful, piercing stanza, and anything that brings these poems to a new audience is to be cheered; a lovely package indeed. (Picture book/poetry. 7+)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2007
ISBN: 0-06-029505-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2006
Categories: CHILDREN'S POETRY
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