Pinny packs a small bag full of contingency items before she leaves home for a walk—and everything comes in handy by the end of her adventurous day.
The sweet, self-assured little girl (Pinny in Summer, 2016) has returned, along with her two stalwart friends, Annie and Lou. The story begins as Pinny, alone in her bedroom, wakes up with exercises before packing for her walk. The fall weather is unpredictable, so Pinny packs both a sweater and a rain hat in her bag, as well as an apple, some cookies, a book, and “the most important thing of all—her treasure pouch.” As in the summer tale, there are short, named chapters related in accessible, graceful sentences, with illustrations to match. The color palette captures the muted beauty of a coastal fall. Pinny and friends live in an ideal world of tall, tick-free grasses and no adult supervision. In fact, they rise to the occasion of helping the lighthouse keeper when a sudden fog threatens a ship at sea. It boggles the more sophisticated mind that the lighthouse keeper really needs their help, but the alternative is equally sweet: a man who takes the time to empower local children. Pinny’s pleasure in her friends, in being helpful, and in nature’s ephemeral treats is contagious. Pinny, Lou, and the lighthouse keeper present white; Annie appears to be Asian.
We eagerly await Pinny’s winter. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-77306-106-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Groundwood
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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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
Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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How do you make a new friend when an old one moves away?
Buddy (from Sorry, Grown-Ups, You Can’t Go to School, 2019, etc.) is feeling lonely. His best friend just moved across town. To make matters worse, there is a field trip coming up, and Buddy needs a bus partner. His sister, Lady, has some helpful advice for making a new pal: “You just need to find something you have in common.” Buddy loves the game Robo Chargers and karate. Surely there is someone else who does, too! Unfortunately, there isn’t. However, when a new student arrives (one day later) and asks everyone to call her Sunny instead of Alison, Buddy gets excited. No one uses his given name, either; they just call him Buddy. He secretly whispers his “real, official name” to Sunny at lunch—an indication that a true friendship is being formed. The rest of the story plods merrily along, all pieces falling exactly into place (she even likes Robo Chargers!), accompanied by Bowers’ digital art, a mix of spot art and full-bleed illustrations. Friendship-building can be an emotionally charged event in a child’s life—young readers will certainly see themselves in Buddy’s plight—but, alas, there is not much storytelling magic to be found. Buddy and his family are White, Sunny and Mr. Teacher are Black, and Buddy’s other classmates are racially diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Making friends isn’t always this easy and convenient. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-30709-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2022
Categories: CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES
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