Lambelet’s luscious, cinematic artwork will transport readers.
A boy finds joy, loss, healing, and love in the power of storytelling.
In cap and suspenders, Liam waves from a dock as his father sets sail across the opening endpages. Reunited, the two embrace before the burly sailor spins tales of his adventures in front of a crackling fire, as mermaids, treasures, and shark-infested waters swirl to life. But when his father sets out again and doesn’t return, Liam’s world turns gray and stories lose their pull, until an old traveler arrives with a magic beard who is able to weave words into pictures. Together, the two journey across the world, and Liam learns to really look and listen, and when the time comes for him to tell a story, he finds his father in stories told, in adventures taken, and in the weaving of words and sharing of stories. Fanciful illustrations are meticulously drawn, and the artist uses geometric shapes stylized to appear sculpted, reminiscent of a stop-motion animated picture. The cool, bright color palette is used to great effect as all turns gray to depict grief and loss, with color returning in the traveler’s stories and in their journey together. Skilled compositional designs showcase the flowing nature of the tales at sea and the traveler’s beard’s ability to hold the memory of adventure and become a metaphor for journey and growth. Liam and his father present white; the traveler has brown skin; Liam’s 19th-century seaside town is largely white but has a few residents of color.
Lambelet’s luscious, cinematic artwork will transport readers. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Oct. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-62414-765-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Page Street
Review Posted Online: July 23, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
A deliciously sweet reminder to try one’s unique best.
This smart cookie wasn’t alwaysa smart cookie.
At the corner of Sweet Street stands a bakery, which a whole range of buns and cakes and treats calls home, including a small cookie who “didn’t feel comfortable speaking up or sharing” any ideas once upon a time. During the early days of gingerbread school, this cookie (with sprinkles on its top half, above its wide eyes and tiny, smiling mouth) never got the best grades, didn’t raise a hand to answer questions, and almost always finished most tests last, despite all best efforts. As a result, the cookie would worry away the nights inside of a cookie jar. Then one day, kind Ms. Biscotti assigns some homework that asks everyone “to create something completely original.” What to do? The cookie’s first attempts (baking, building a birdhouse, sculpting) fail, but an idea strikes soon enough. “A poem!” Titling its opus “My Crumby Days,” the budding cookie poet writes and writes until done. “AHA!” When the time arrives to share the poem with the class, this cookie learns that there’s more than one way to be smart. John and Oswald’s latest installment in the hilarious Food Group series continues to provide plenty of belly laughs (thanks to puns galore!) and mini buns of wisdom in a wholly effervescent package. Oswald’s artwork retains its playful, colorful creative streak. Although slightly less effective than its predecessors due to its rather broad message, this one’s nonetheless an excellent addition to the menu.(This book was reviewed digitally.)
A deliciously sweet reminder to try one’s unique best. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-304540-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre.
Ice princess Lina must navigate family and school in this early chapter read.
The family picnic is today. This is not a typical gathering, since Lina’s maternal relatives are a royal family of Windtamers who have power over the weather and live in castles floating on clouds. Lina herself is mixed race, with black hair and a tan complexion like her Asian-presenting mother’s; her Groundling father appears to be a white human. While making a grand entrance at the castle of her grandfather, the North Wind, she fails to successfully ride a gust of wind and crashes in front of her entire family. This prompts her stern grandfather to ask that Lina move in with him so he can teach her to control her powers. Desperate to avoid this, Lina and her friend Claudia, who is black, get Lina accepted at the Hilltop Science and Arts Academy. Lina’s parents allow her to go as long as she does lessons with grandpa on Saturdays. However, fitting in at a Groundling school is rough, especially when your powers start freak winter storms! With the story unfurling in diary format, bright-pink–highlighted grayscale illustrations help move the plot along. There are slight gaps in the storytelling and the pacing is occasionally uneven, but Lina is full of spunk and promotes self-acceptance.
A jam-packed opener sure to satisfy lovers of the princess genre. (Fantasy. 5-8)Pub Date: June 25, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35393-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2019
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