A hopeful message about altruism, related in accessible language and images.
A young boy learns that kindness is contagious in this picture book morality tale, aimed at children ages 2–8.
Basil doesn’t understand how or why to be kind. He fights with his sister, breaking her doll, and then slams the door to his room in a huff. When his family goes on vacation, his mother makes him give up his seat for an older woman. Basil’s frustrated, until the woman’s gratitude makes him realize that kindness matters. Soon, he decides to share his prized teddy bear with a crying baby, inspiring other passengers to be pleasant to others. When Basil loses his bear, he’s devastated—but kindness saves the day in an ending that will surprise and please youngsters. Simmons’ (We’re All Ice Cream. I’m Just a Different Flavor, 2010) simple, dialogue-heavy text relies greatly on Blueberry Illustrations’ (The Spider and the Vegetables, 2019, etc.) images to convey action; entirely textless pages show Basil’s reactions. The illustrations themselves, however, are uneven; early on, their letterbox-style layout seems designed for a differently sized page; later an airplane’s interior (featuring passengers who all share the same light brown skin tone) seems unrealistically large. However, the soft-edged, full-color art has a pleasantly friendly tone, overall, and Basil’s change of heart is truly appealing.
A hopeful message about altruism, related in accessible language and images.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-578-46059-8
Page Count: 28
Publisher: BookBaby
Review Posted Online: Jan. 29, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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
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