A simple but beautiful story about how little perfection matters.
A child decides to build “THE BEST SNOWMAN EVER!”
One cozy morning, the brown-skinned, dark-haired youngster wakes up to discover that it’s snowing outside. After donning a sweater, boots, coat, and hat (with a little help from Mom), the child rushes outside, bursting with visions of greatness. This snowman, the protagonist believes, will not only be easy to make, but it will also come to life and carry the child away, through the sky, into a magical adventure: “It will be a dream come true!” But after the child finishes rolling balls of snow and adding stick arms, the results are not quite as expected. Luckily, with a little imagination and a lot of heart, the child puts the finishing touches on this less-than-perfect creation that, despite its flaws, is still the best snowman ever. The book’s spare, witty text pairs perfectly with the vibrant, exuberant illustrations. Awan makes great use of just a few words, layering in onomatopoeia that lends the lines a sense of momentum. Overall, this is a fun and meaningful read for little ones, though its message about the potential joy that can be found in imperfection is one that will resonate with readers of all ages.
A simple but beautiful story about how little perfection matters. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2023
ISBN: 9781665938174
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2023
A bit predictable but pleasantly illustrated.
Bill Martin Jr and John Archambault’s classic alphabet book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (1989) gets the Halloween treatment.
Chung follows the original formula to the letter. In alphabetical order, each letter climbs to the top of a tree. They are knocked back to the ground in a jumble before climbing up in sequence again. In homage to the spooky holiday theme, they scale a “creaky old tree,” and a ghostly jump scare causes the pileup. The chunky, colorful art is instantly recognizable. The charmingly costumed letters (“H swings a tail. / I wears a patch. J and K don / bows that don’t match”) are set against a dark backdrop, framed by pages with orange or purple borders. The spreads feature spiderwebs and jack-o’-lanterns. The familiar rhyme cadence is marred by the occasional clunky or awkward phrase; in particular, the adapted refrain of “Chicka chicka tricka treat” offers tongue-twisting fun, but it’s repeatedly followed by the disappointing half-rhyme “Everybody sneaka sneak.” Even this odd construction feels shoehorned into place, since “sneaking” makes little sense when every character in the book is climbing together. The final line of the book ends on a more satisfying note, with “Everybody—time to eat!”
A bit predictable but pleasantly illustrated. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: July 15, 2025
ISBN: 9781665954785
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
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While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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