Emphasizing financial responsibility, this engaging tale will prompt useful discussions between parents and children.
A girl wonders what she should do with a dollar bill in this picture book.
After receiving her first dollar, Madison ponders her options. Should she save, spend, donate, or invest? The girl, who has brown eyes, dark skin, and dark hair, considers purchasing toys or candy and also contemplates investing or saving. She weighs giving “away 25 cents because she feels so blessed” and thinks about surprising a friend with a gift or donating to a neighbor. Ultimately, the story leaves Madison’s final decision open-ended. Beckford provides space for readers to offer their opinions (“Tell us how you would spend YOUR dollar!”) and implores them to treat money sensibly. Using an interactive format, the enjoyable book introduces ideas of financial responsibility in a simple, kid-friendly way. The bold, graphic, uncredited illustrations supplement Madison’s thoughts. Some show the girl as she ruminates about spending her money, including at a toy store. Many feature thematic elements, like an image depicting coin jars labeled “save, spend, invest, give.” Several provide information. For instance, Madison looks at a paper titled “Maddie’s Savings Plan” that lists: “Spend 50 cents”; “Save 25 cents”; “Give 25 cents.” Other images are fun and creative; when the text explains that Madison’s money gives her “major buying power,” she is dressed as a superhero. The work includes illustrations of bills and coins for readers to print out and color.
Emphasizing financial responsibility, this engaging tale will prompt useful discussions between parents and children.Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-952684-14-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Thrive Publishing Company LLC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Broccoli: No way is James going to eat broccoli. “It’s disgusting,” says James. Well then, James, says his father, let’s consider the alternatives: some wormy dirt, perhaps, some stinky socks, some pre-chewed gum? James reconsiders the broccoli, but—milk? “Blech,” says James. Right, says his father, who needs strong bones? You’ll be great at hide-and-seek, though not so great at baseball and kickball and even tickling the dog’s belly. James takes a mouthful. So it goes through lumpy oatmeal, mushroom lasagna and slimy eggs, with James’ father parrying his son’s every picky thrust. And it is fun, because the father’s retorts are so outlandish: the lasagna-making troll in the basement who will be sent back to the rat circus, there to endure the rodent’s vicious bites; the uneaten oatmeal that will grow and grow and probably devour the dog that the boy won’t be able to tickle any longer since his bones are so rubbery. Schneider’s watercolors catch the mood of gentle ribbing, the looks of bewilderment and surrender and the deadpanned malarkey. It all makes James’ father’s last urging—“I was just going to say that you might like them if you tried them”—wholly fresh and unexpected advice. (Early reader. 5-9)
Pub Date: May 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-547-14956-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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