A lovely multicultural story about a young friendship, celebrating culture and differences.
A childhood friendship and cultural acceptance are at the center of this authentic, special story.
In alternating first-person narration, Annie and Maya take turns describing their weekends: They play video games inside and in the backyard of Annie’s big home; in Maya’s little house, they help with the garden and play with her two dogs. When in Annie’s home, Maya is introduced to different foods: noodles, dumplings, and gai lan. At Maya’s place, Annie enjoys tamales, tacos, and pozole. The two celebrate a posada with Maya’s mother and Lunar New Year with Annie’s dad. Sometimes the girls fight, but they always make up. One Sunday, both families eat together, and the girls learn that their parents, Annie’s dad and Maya’s mom, are getting married. Muraida’s colorful, vibrant illustrations pay special, subtle tribute to the girls’ Latin American and Vietnamese backgrounds; spreads of the girls at their respective homes display culturally appropriate décor and patterns. Most strikingly, perhaps, two spreads depict the families sharing in each other’s religious and cultural celebrations: One displays a candlelit evening parade and children striking a piñata, while the other depicts another vivid parade following red lanterns and an undulating, festive paper dragon. Each page incorporates bilingual text for both English and Spanish readers.
A lovely multicultural story about a young friendship, celebrating culture and differences. (Bilingual picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: May 31, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-55885-859-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Piñata Books/Arte Público
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Still, preschoolers will likely savor this mouthwatering treatment of a subject that looms large in many early school...
The familiar theme of the challenges facing a new kid in town is given an original treatment by photographer Border in this book of photos of three-dimensional objects in a simple modeled landscape.
Peanut Butter is represented by a slice of white bread spread with the popular condiment. The other characters in the story—a hamburger with a pair of hot dogs in tow, a bowl of alphabet soup, a meatball jumping a rope of spaghetti, a carton of French fries and a pink cupcake—are represented by skillfully crafted models of these foods, anthropomorphized using simple wire construction. Rejected by each character in turn in his search for playmates, Peanut Butter discovers in the end that Jelly is his true match (not Cupcake, as the title suggests), perhaps because she is the only one who looks like him, being a slice of white bread spread with jelly. The friendly foods end up happily playing soccer together. Some parents may have trouble with the unabashedly happy depiction of carbs and American junk food (no carrots or celery sticks in this landscape), and others may find themselves troubled by the implication that friendship across difference is impossible.
Still, preschoolers will likely savor this mouthwatering treatment of a subject that looms large in many early school experiences. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 29, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-399-16773-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2014
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