A heartening, uplifting story of intergenerational connection.
A boy receives lifelong encouragement from his grandfather in Cermeño’s picture book.
Orphaned as a baby, David is raised by his grandfather, Atun, who provides guidance and support. For instance, when classmates tease young David, Atun urges him to stay strong. The boy repeats his grandfather’s phrase, “El sol no se tapa con un dedo” (“You cannot cover the sun with a single finger”). As David grows up, Atun shares anecdotes, and when David is nervous to audition for the school play, Atun recounts when his own father encouraged him to apply for a job despite others’ doubts. David even seeks Atun’s advice when he’s away at college, and they remain close until Atun’s death. Though devastated, David finds “Strength From Memories,” pursues his dreams, and shares his grandfather’s wisdom with his own son. This slice-of-life tale effectively depicts how family stories are passed down, and the grandfather-grandson relationship will appeal to readers with similar family bonds. Cermeño thoughtfully incorporates how sense-memories have an everlasting impact on one’s life; for example, Atun is soothed by the scent of coffee, which reminds of happy times with his dad. Woodcock provides soft, textured paintings with warm watercolor accents. They follow the story’s events, showing David onstage, young Atun cooking, and characters embracing; the pages are also decorated with coffee splatters.
A heartening, uplifting story of intergenerational connection.Pub Date: April 18, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-952233-12-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Indie Books International
Review Posted Online: Nov. 27, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
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)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A captivating book situated in present-day discourse around the refugee crisis, featuring two boys who stand by their high...
Two parallel stories, one of a Syrian boy from Aleppo fleeing war, and another of a white American boy, son of a NATO contractor, dealing with the challenges of growing up, intersect at a house in Brussels.
Ahmed lost his father while crossing the Mediterranean. Alone and broke in Europe, he takes things into his own hands to get to safety but ends up having to hide in the basement of a residential house. After months of hiding, he is discovered by Max, a boy of similar age and parallel high integrity and courage, who is experiencing his own set of troubles learning a new language, moving to a new country, and being teased at school. In an unexpected turn of events, the two boys and their new friends Farah, a Muslim Belgian girl, and Oscar, a white Belgian boy, successfully scheme for Ahmed to go to school while he remains in hiding the rest of the time. What is at stake for Ahmed is immense, and so is the risk to everyone involved. Marsh invites art and history to motivate her protagonists, drawing parallels to gentiles who protected Jews fleeing Nazi terror and citing present-day political news. This well-crafted and suspenseful novel touches on the topics of refugees and immigrant integration, terrorism, Islam, Islamophobia, and the Syrian war with sensitivity and grace.
A captivating book situated in present-day discourse around the refugee crisis, featuring two boys who stand by their high values in the face of grave risk and succeed in drawing goodwill from others. (Historical fiction. 10-14)Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-30757-6
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 10, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
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