Purposeful, but saved from didacticism by the sheer exuberance of the illustrations; the accessible text introduces the idea...
Although today’s kids usually communicate through texting or email, Elliot from the United States and Kailash from India use pictures and a few simple sentences to exchange information about their lives.
Their teachers facilitate the snail mailing of pictorial letters, just as the author-illustrator did when she visited Nepal, which provided the inspiration for this book. The title, also used as a refrain throughout the book, is a popular saying in India and Nepal, heard by Kostecki-Shaw when she traveled there. Elliot and Kailash explore their similarities and differences, concluding that their lives are “Different, different but the SAME!” The engaging childlike acrylic paintings with crayon, pencil, tissue paper and other collage elements show the busy crowded American streets of Elliot’s city, the traditional buildings of Kailash’s riverside village, the taxis and buses in the States and the taxis and camel-pulled carts in India. The English alphabet is reproduced on wide-ruled notebook paper and the Hindi alphabet (unfortunately unidentified) on a small slate, and both typical American pets (dog and fish) and a whole farmyard of Indian animals appear. Both kids live unusually low-tech lives (no computers or cell phones in sight), but they each enjoy learning about their pen pal’s world.
Purposeful, but saved from didacticism by the sheer exuberance of the illustrations; the accessible text introduces the idea of traditional two-way communication and demonstrates just how small our world can be. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Sept. 13, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8050-8946-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano/Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: July 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2011
A strong, accessible diary story for readers seeking an adorable animal tale.
Bub the anxious pug tackles snow days and new neighbors in his second outing.
Bub, acclaimed by some as “the cutest pug on the planet,” at first shares the enthusiasm owner Bella expresses about snow days even though he doesn’t know what they are. Then Duchess the cat (mildly antagonistic, in typical feline fashion) rains on Bub’s parade by pointing out that snow is water—and Bub’s no fan of rain or baths. After a comedic and disastrous first attempt, Bub learns how to properly dress for snow and enjoy it. The outdoor fun’s cut short by mysterious noises coming from the new neighbor, which frighten Bella into thinking there’s a monster. Bub puts on a Sherlock Holmes get-up to investigate but becomes afraid himself of the new neighbor’s large dog. Finally, Bella meets Jack, who’s been working on a tree fort, and his dog, Luna, who is enthusiastically friendly. The story ends on a positive note, as they all happily work together on the fort. The full-color cartoon illustrations, especially of Bub, are adorably expressive and certain to please the age group. The generous font and format—short, diary-entry paragraphs and speech-bubble conversations—create a quick pace. Bub’s stylized emoji bubbles return and are most hilarious when used to express his nervous flatulence. Bella and Jack both present white.
A strong, accessible diary story for readers seeking an adorable animal tale. (Fantasy. 5-7)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-53006-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
Inviting.
A story inspired by a real-life effort to achieve social inclusion.
Rhyming text enriched by energetic, cartoon-style illustrations follows the diverse students in Miss Mellon’s class at recess. Most of the children dive into play with peers, but some feel timid or excluded. Those at play are initially oblivious to the discomfort of the others, but then a child named Jake notices someone using a crutch and hanging back from play. “ ‘It’s my leg,’ said Gabe. ‘I can’t run in a cast, / so I never get picked, not even last.’ ” Affable Jake responds, “Come play with us anyway. There’s time to spare,” causing Gabe to reply, “Wait a minute …I’ll be right there.” This interaction creates a compassionate domino effect of inclusion, with Gabe reaching out to another kid on the sidelines, and so on. When the children (and, oddly, an elephant and dragon) go inside after recess they ask, “how could we say, / without using words, that we all want to play?” Miss Mellon says they need “a seat / to wait for a friend or a buddy to meet.” It’s unfortunate the solution—the eponymous buddy bench—originates with an adult rather than the compassionate children themselves, especially since the author’s note reveals that it was a first grader who proposed the first one in the United States, but the generosity on display is heartening.
Inviting. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Aug. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-88448-697-8
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Tilbury House
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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