A (mostly) sweet story of friendship, letting go, and new beginnings.
When Button has to move away from her best friend, Bundle, she finds a way to stay connected from afar, if only in her mind.
Button, a white girl with long, reddish-blonde hair, and Bundle, a black girl with afro puffs, spend their days together, playing with their dolls, “weaving daisy chains, blowing wishes, and singing their song.” Both girls are distressed when Button moves away. “Button didn’t think they’d ever be happy again.” Three spreads are devoted to this sad time, and Button’s sadness is transferred onto her doll: “Petal wanted to stay in her bed.…It was a lonely, blue time for Button and Petal.” But one day, a yellow balloon “arrived with a song on the breeze,” and Button uses it to send Petal off to find Bundle and Rose (Bundle’s doll and Petal’s best friend). She happily imagines Bundle receiving Petal and singing their song. Then, one day, Button is looking for fairies when she stumbles upon another girl looking for fairies “and friends.” Leah, a girl with light brown skin and long, brown hair, gives Button a unicorn, and once again Button has a best friend, “singing a new song” without forgetting her old song and her old friend. The illustrations, soft and whimsical drawings done in watercolor and pastel with pencil, create a dreamlike quality for each stage of the story. Button’s friends feel almost imaginary, which is somewhat troubling as they are depicted as girls of color, but her emotions feel very real.
A (mostly) sweet story of friendship, letting go, and new beginnings. (Picture book. 6-9)Pub Date: Feb. 19, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-6668-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
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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