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THE COOL BEAN

Name: THE COOL BEAN
Author: Jory John
ISBN: 978-0-06-295452-7

From the Food Group series

by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 3, 2019

Cool beans indeed.

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A supposed “has-bean” shows that coolness has more to do with deeds than demeanor.

Offering further moral instruction in this leguminous cousin to The Bad Seed (2017) and The Good Egg (2019), Oswald portrays three beans—each a different species but all sporting boss shades, fly threads, and that requisite air of nonchalance—bringing the cool to streets, hallways, playgrounds, and Leguma Beach. Meanwhile, a fourth (a scraggly-haired chickpea), whose efforts to echo the look and the ’tude have fallen flat, takes on the role of nerdy narrator to recall “olden days” when they all hung out in the same pod. Still, despite rolling separate ways (nobody’s fault: “That’s just how it is sometimes. You spend less time together, even though you’re not totally sure why”), when the uncool bean drops a lunch tray, skins a kid knee on the playground, or just needs a hint in class, one of the others is always on the scene toot suite. No biggie. And passing those casual acts of kindness forward? “Now that’s cool.” John’s good-hearted text makes some hay with the bean puns while Oswald’s pipe-stemmed limbs, googly eyes, and accessories give these anthropomorphic legumes lots of personality. As a fava to young audiences, pair with Jamie Michalak and Frank Kolar’s Frank and Bean (2019) for a musical combination.

Cool beans indeed. (Picture book. 6-9)

Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2019

ISBN: 978-0-06-295452-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Oct. 22, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BIG CHEESE
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SOUR GRAPE
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald

- BOOK REVIEW
THE COOL BEAN PRESENTS
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald with Saba Joshaghani

- BOOK REVIEW
THE COOL BEAN MAKES A SPLASH
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald

- BOOK REVIEW
YOU'RE GOING TO LOVE THIS BOOK!
by Jory John ; illustrated by Olivier Tallec

- BOOK REVIEW
THE BIG CHEESE
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald

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WHAT THE ROAD SAID

by Cleo Wade ; illustrated by Lucie de Moyencourt ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 23, 2021

Inspiration, shrink wrapped.

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From an artist, poet, and Instagram celebrity, a pep talk for all who question where a new road might lead.

Opening by asking readers, “Have you ever wanted to go in a different direction,” the unnamed narrator describes having such a feeling and then witnessing the appearance of a new road “almost as if it were magic.” “Where do you lead?” the narrator asks. The Road’s twice-iterated response—“Be a leader and find out”—bookends a dialogue in which a traveler’s anxieties are answered by platitudes. “What if I fall?” worries the narrator in a stylized, faux hand-lettered type Wade’s Instagram followers will recognize. The Road’s dialogue and the narration are set in a chunky, sans-serif type with no quotation marks, so the one flows into the other confusingly. “Everyone falls at some point, said the Road. / But I will always be there when you land.” Narrator: “What if the world around us is filled with hate?” Road: “Lead it to love.” Narrator: “What if I feel stuck?” Road: “Keep going.” De Moyencourt illustrates this colloquy with luminous scenes of a small, brown-skinned child, face turned away from viewers so all they see is a mop of blond curls. The child steps into an urban mural, walks along a winding country road through broad rural landscapes and scary woods, climbs a rugged metaphorical mountain, then comes to stand at last, Little Prince–like, on a tiny blue and green planet. Wade’s closing claim that her message isn’t meant just for children is likely superfluous…in fact, forget the just.

Inspiration, shrink wrapped. (Picture book. 6-8, adult)

Pub Date: March 23, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-250-26949-2

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: April 7, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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DOG DAYS

From the Carver Chronicles series , Vol. 1

by Karen English ; illustrated by Laura Freeman ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 17, 2013

This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...

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A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.

Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.

This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)