Children are growing and figuring out who they are in relation to those around them; the direct, purposeful style of poetry...
Florian explores both the joys and conflicts of having a friend.
Twenty-five poems are accompanied by childlike drawings using colored pencils and crayon on manila paper. Their scribbled nature instantly connotes a time when making friends is brand new and both difficult and thrilling by turns. Loose-limbed and energetic, Florian’s friends of all ethnicities hug, stretch, and reach their arms out in hopes of reciprocity. Sometimes friends share everything: “We stick, we two, like glue, like glue. / We stick like thick molasses. / So close we are, we stick like tar / (and share one pair of glasses).” But other times, friendships fall apart: “We used to be friends. / We drifted away. / Will we get back together? / Well, maybe someday.” Florian explores themes of jealousy, trust, and separation. Friends don’t even always have to be human—sometimes they are imaginary, sometimes they are found in nature, and sometimes (as in a quick-witted reveal) they could even be a computer. Especially appropriate for a book on friendship, three poems are made for two voices to encourage reading together.
Children are growing and figuring out who they are in relation to those around them; the direct, purposeful style of poetry lends itself nicely to navigating the many emotions of friendship. (Picture book/poetry. 5-9)Pub Date: July 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4424-8795-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The true meaning of the holiday season shines here.
Kids teach a valuable lesson about community spirit.
A city block is ablaze with red and green lights for Christmas; one house glows blue and white for Hanukkah. This is where Isaac, a Jewish boy, lives, across the street from best friend Teresa, excitedly preparing for Christmas. They love lighting up their homes in holiday colors. After an antisemitic bigot smashes a window in Isaac’s house, Isaac relights the menorah the next night, knowing if his family doesn’t, it means hiding their Jewishness, which doesn’t “feel right.” Artistic Teresa supports Isaac by drawing a menorah, inscribed to her friend, and placing the picture in her window. What occurs subsequently is a remarkable demonstration of community solidarity for Isaac and his family from everyone, including the media. Galvanized into defiant action against hate, thousands of townspeople display menorahs in windows in residences and public buildings. This quiet, uplifting tale is inspired by an incident that occurred in Billings, Montana, in 1993. Readers will feel heartened at children’s power to influence others to stand up for justice and defeat vile prejudice. The colorful illustrations, rendered digitally with brushes of the artist’s devising, resemble scratch art. Isaac and Teresa are White, and there is some racial diversity among the townspeople; one child is depicted in a wheelchair. An author’s note provides information about the actual event.
The true meaning of the holiday season shines here. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 19, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-64614-087-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Levine Querido
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
A powerful argument for seeing and celebrating color.
The love and appreciation of color shines through this vibrant retrospective on activism, courage, and resistance.
As an emphatic corrective to the oft-repeated but misguided phrase “I don’t see color,” luminous digital illustrations offer an unabashed education in race, culture, and the history of hard-fought social justice wins. An omniscient narrator sees a full palette, from the “smoky quartz” of Elizabeth and Roy Peratrovich, Tlingit activists whose advocacy led to the United States’ first anti-discrimination laws, to the “golden embers” of Native Hawaiian protesters such as Haunani-Kay Trask, who pushed for the U.S. government to acknowledge its role in overthrowing the Kingdom of Hawaii. Using color as a framework that goes beyond skin and race, this picture book celebrates well-known people and their accomplishments, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speeches or the labor activism of Dolores Huerta and Cesar Chavez. The book also illuminates often-overlooked figures, such as Fred Korematsu, who brought a Supreme Court case against the U.S. government in 1944 over the incarceration of Japanese Americans; Madonna Thunder Hawk, who fought tirelessly against the Dakota Access Pipeline; and Ayọ Tometi, Alicia Garza, and Patrisse Cullors, who founded the Black Lives Matter movement. Each color that’s emphasized, from “powdered oak” to “gleaming stardust,” not only paints a rich portrait but also provides texture to a cause or cultural context. Backmatter includes authors’ notes and brief bios of the illustrious figures included throughout to guide further research.
A powerful argument for seeing and celebrating color. (Informational picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9780063234260
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2024
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