What could have been a calming bedtime story featuring the variety of things found in a library is spoiled by abrasive...
Bedtime stories are plentiful, but this one is anything but tender and restful.
In rhyming verse two kids say good night to all kinds of library items. “Good night, library; / Darkness falls. / It’s sleepy time / For these great walls. // Good night, library. / You must be tired / From all the learning / You’ve inspired.” The litany of items the text wishes good night includes poetry and prose, plots, puppet stages, computers, carpet squares, fairy tales, characters, filing cart, and more. This being a fairly modern library, they also bid good night to board games and comic books, but if there is a 3-D printer or makerspace, it goes unremarked. The apparent intent of this homage to libraries is well and good, but the visual execution lacks charm. The cartoonish illustrations are garish double-page spreads that bleed off the pages, and the intensity of the colors makes the pages appear crowded. Exaggeratedly bug-eyed kids act out the rhymes; they are a diverse lot. The librarian, a white woman, wears her hair in a bun but otherwise looks pretty darn hip; she wears a droopy gray sweater, black jeans, and pumps.
What could have been a calming bedtime story featuring the variety of things found in a library is spoiled by abrasive artwork. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: March 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-58536-406-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
The combination of haiku, attractive illustrations, and interesting information makes this a keeper.
This picture book combines poetry with facts about nature.
Using the arrival of morning as its focus and theme, this nonfiction book provides information about animal, insect, and bird life along with some general natural science. From birds’ singing in the morning through moths’ finding quiet spots to rest as the sun rises to the daily routines of rabbits, foxes, and other animals, readers will discover fascinating facts about Earth’s creatures. Combining entertainment and information, this book not only features the lives of animals, but it also explains why the sky changes color throughout the day and how the Earth’s rotation creates the phenomena of day and night. Each double-page spread highlights a different creature or natural phenomenon; there’s a haiku on verso and on recto, a moderately sized paragraph with both commonly known and more unusual facts. Highlighted words stand out as obvious vocabulary builders; readers can learn their meanings in the appended glossary. The illustrations are large-scale and vivid, with the palette lightening over the course of the book as morning takes hold. Illustrations are graphically simple, with cheerful cartoon animals contributing to the upbeat mood. An added bonus is a page at the back encouraging readers to write their own nature haiku.
The combination of haiku, attractive illustrations, and interesting information makes this a keeper. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: March 24, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-62317-385-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: North Atlantic
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The counting concepts and comedy make this a perfect 100th day read-aloud.
The 100th day of school gets a lighthearted treatment in this debut rhyming picture book.
It’s the 100th day of school, but the class has only counted up to 93. The teacher is worried she’ll be fired, so the students put their heads together to figure out what days they missed. After recalling a number of chaotic days—the class pet’s escape, the field trip to the circus, the first snowfall, and more—the classmates arrive at a new total, but now they’ve hit 101. After the poor teacher faints, the students use all their counting strategies to add up the right number of days. The teacher shows her appreciation, and the class assures her: “You can count on us!” There is no shortage of books celebrating the 100th day of school, but Reistad, a librarian, captures perfectly how busy school days can escape a careful count—and how teamwork helps the students celebrate both the fun they’ve had and the class they love. The rhyming text flows smoothly and seamlessly integrates math vocabulary (“digit,” “sum,” “abacus”). Veteran illustrator Barber skillfully creates amusing illustrations, as seen in his Nobody Likes a Booger (2017), and here, that humor is particularly present in the teacher’s expressions and body language. The students are a diverse group ethnically, but they are identical in their positive attitudes and willingness to help their beleaguered instructor.
The counting concepts and comedy make this a perfect 100th day read-aloud.Pub Date: April 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-64343-987-7
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Beaver's Pond Press
Review Posted Online: May 5, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
