by Jennifer Plecas ; illustrated by Jennifer Plecas ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 11, 2013
Bibliotherapy with its heart in the right place, though a little underdone.
Olive and Emily, Emily and Olive; they will be best friends forever. Period. The End. Or is it?
The story of two best friends and how they are infiltrated by a new buddy is a universal school story. When Eva arrives, quiet Olive watches a new friendship develop, one that does not fit into her perfect world. Or maybe she does not fit into that new world. Eva and Emily enjoy each other: They dance ballet together, wear matching bows and T-shirts in an “ugly throw-up purple color,” carry the exact same lunch bag and start calling each other the “Sparkle-Es.” Olive doesn’t know what to do. One day, she tries to become part of the crowd, but she ends up in tears. Plecas gets the feelings just right, allowing young readers to care about Olive and wonder why Eva and Emily are ignoring her. While the pen, ink and watercolor illustrations show every devastating emotion, children might have been better served if Olive was a bit less timid. Simply standing by and feeling sorry for oneself is not the best plan. Nevertheless, sticky social situations are a challenge, and this well-meaning offering will at least give youngsters a place to start thinking. Teachers looking for subtle stories of social cruelty will find this a discussion starter.
Bibliotherapy with its heart in the right place, though a little underdone. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: July 11, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-399-25287-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2013
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by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
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