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BIRTHDAYS OF FREEDOM

Name: BIRTHDAYS OF FREEDOM
Author: Genevieve Foster

AMERICA'S HERITAGE FROM THE ANCIENT WORLD

by Genevieve Foster illustrated by Genevieve Foster ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 1952

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Teachers, parents, and children who have enjoyed and profited from this author's three world biographies of Lincoln, Washington, and Augustus Caesar will be predisposed toward this book, but they should be forewarned that this does not have the same type of horizontal construction that won the other books so many followers. Its subtitle is America's Heritage from the Ancient World and it seems likely that the gap between 476 and 1776, which the author is apparently leaving for subsequent volumes, will give younger children the sense of being left suspended in time. The material is well told, but the book should find its widest use when it is read with an adult close by. the author's drawings loom large, engulfing the text in some instances, and many of them are cluttered with maps, diagrams and charts that need adult elucidation.

Pub Date: June 1, 1952

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 64

Publisher: Scribner

Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1952

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BE CONFIDENT IN WHO YOU ARE

From the Middle School Confidential series

by Annie Fox & illustrated by Matt Kindt & developed by Electric Eggplant ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2011

The app takes advantage of zoom features to take readers through panel by panel, providing a sense of forward motion that...

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Traditionally a paper-based series, Middle School Confidential adapts its first graphic novel to the iPad leveraging the device’s functionality to infuse a wide variety of sounds, short songs and character voices.

The app takes advantage of zoom features to take readers through panel by panel, providing a sense of forward motion that synchronizes well with the text’s format. Divided into eight chapters, the story introduces relevant teen topics such as body image, self-esteem, popularity and stress through short, everyday interactions among a group of six male and female friends. To round out each chapter, a teen presents a related short message that’s more public-service announcement than component of the story, which may feel over the top to the audience. Each character is presented through actions and dialogue in the short chapters and with a brief bio that includes his or her strengths and insecurities. Additionally, each bio includes an e-mail address, which links to the iPad’s e-mail function; there is no indication of who will actually receive a reader’s e-mail message and what if any response such an e-mail might trigger. The images in the line-and-watercolor panels mirror and reinforce the characters’ related emotions or actions.

Pub Date: April 1, 2011

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Free Spirit Publishing

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2011

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HOW TO CODE A ROLLERCOASTER

by Josh Funk ; illustrated by Sara Palacios ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 24, 2019

Despite minor bumps, a ride that’s worth returning to.

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Pearl and her robot, Pascal, take their coding skills for a spin at the amusement park in this Girls Who Code picture book, a follow-up to How To Code a Sandcastle (2018).

The park has many rides to choose from, and Pearl has 10 tokens to last her the day. But her favorite ride, the Python roller coaster, looks busy. Pearl decides to do something else fun, using code concepts such as variables to keep track of the length of the line and her remaining tokens and a conditional statement to decide when to return to the Python. Throughout, computer science terms are defined crisply in the text and vividly illustrated in the pictures, which use images such as popcorn bags for variables and the Ferris wheel for loops (keeping track of ice cream flavors seems somewhat contrived). The backmatter explains these ideas more fully. Pascal’s too-literal interpretations of Pearl’s statements make for several amusing moments along the way. When Pearl runs short of tokens (a missed opportunity to talk about checking for more than one condition?), she’s undaunted by the disaster, taking readers on a fun hunt for a secret hidden password, in a nod to the importance of proper sequencing. Pearl has brown skin and black curls; others at the park have a variety of skin tones.

Despite minor bumps, a ride that’s worth returning to. (Picture book. 4-8)