Three cheers for this feisty girl of color and her big imagination.
In Lali’s hands, an ordinary feather becomes something fantastic.
When Lali first finds a feather in a field, she asks all the birds she knows if it belongs to them. But Rooster, Crow, and Peacock don’t claim it, so Lali takes it for herself. At first, birds such as Chicken, Duck, and Jay laugh at her feather, until Lali shows them all the magical things it can do: write a note, sweep the floor, tickle her father, and make her sister sneeze. A strong gust of wind swooshes Lali’s feather away, leaving her devastated. By now, all the birds are eager to help. The book happily ends with Lali discovering another discarded object—one that promises a whole new set of adventures. Zia expertly code-switches between Indian language–inspired slang and standard English, rendering the narratorial voice pleasantly distinct. The illustrations continue this cultural mix: Brown-skinned Lali wears a bindi on her forehead, a traditional Indian blouse, gold bangles, and fluorescent orange shorts. The author’s use of the rule of threes—three birds turn down Lali’s feather, followed by three birds who discount her feather’s usefulness—strikes a beautifully balanced storyline that is predictable yet surprising. The pictures accompanying the text are full of color and motion, depicting a lush, rural landscape and perfectly supporting the quick-moving protagonist.
Three cheers for this feisty girl of color and her big imagination. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68263-129-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
Slight, though silly and amusing.
Barnacle longs for a change in routine.
A lone, pale barnacle hangs over the blue water, affixed by its hatlike shell to the bottom of a wooden pier. Here it seems to the barnacle that every day is just about the same: “The tide comes IN. // I am WET and COLD. / The tide goes OUT. // I am DRY and HOT.” The crustacean watches the world go by, or at least as much of it as is visible from one fixed vantage point. Four appendages wave expressively below an exaggeratedly cartoonish face. Its expression is scowling and grumpy: “I am BORED.” When a yellow, polka-dot fish swims by, Barnacle is struck by a thought: “I bet his days are so FUN.” Perceptive readers may notice that from this point Barnacle is actually not entirely bored, as the many delights available to this brightly colored fish play out—at least in Barnacle’s imagination. Barnacle pictures the sunny, big-eyed fish happily engaged in entertaining, alliterative activities in the pale blue sea: “I bet he DIVES with dolphins. / I bet he SOARS with sailfish.” But a reversal in fortune demonstrates that excitement and boredom are all in how a situation is perceived (and also that, as in most of nature, eating or being eaten is the rule). Fenske’s open, flat-colored, loose-lined, animated cartoon style and simple dialogue-bubble text in a large, bold font are inviting for new readers.
Slight, though silly and amusing. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 10, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-86504-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Cheery fun that will leave series fans “egg”-static.
In his latest outing, Bear and his pals go in search of eggs.
Bear “lumbers with his friends through the Strawberry Vale.” Raven finds a nest; climbing up, “The bear finds eggs!”: a refrain that appears throughout. Instead of eating the robin’s eggs, however, Bear leaves a gift of dried berries in the nest for the “soon-to-be-chicks.” Next, the friends find 10 mallard eggs (as bright blue as the robin’s), and Bear leaves sunflower seeds. Then the wail of Mama Meadowlark, whose bright yellow undercarriage strikes a warm golden note, leads them to promise to find her lost eggs. With his friends’ assistance, Bear finds one, and they decide to paint them “so they aren’t lost again.” Another is discovered, painted, and placed in Hare’s basket. After hours of persistent searching, Bear suddenly spots the remaining two eggs “in a small patch of clover.” Before they can return these eggs, the chicks hatch and rejoin their mother. Back at his lair, Bear, with his troupe, is visited by all 17 chicks and the robin, mallard, and meadowlark moms: “And the bear finds friends!” Though this sweet spring tale centers on finding and painting eggs, it makes no overt references to Easter. The soft green and blue acrylics, predictable rhymes, and rolling rhythm make this series installment another low-key natural read-aloud.
Cheery fun that will leave series fans “egg”-static. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2024
ISBN: 9781665936552
Page Count: 40
Publisher: McElderry
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
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