A thoughtful primer for children that comfortingly and articulately explains a delicate topic.
In this picture book, kids learn the difference between secrets that should be kept and those that should be shared.
Stephenson-Laws uses simple verse in an ABCB rhyme scheme to introduce the idea that there are different kinds of secrets: “Some secrets are sweet, / like a gift in a box, / But some hide a feeling / that squiggles and knocks.” Examples of “sweet” secrets include hiding a birthday card for dad’s surprise party. Examples of secrets that should be shared with a trusted adult are never explicitly stated and can therefore refer to a wide variety of circumstances. References to “words or touch” that feel “wrong or unclear”—along with the reminder that “your body is yours, / from your toes to your core”—heavily infer that such secrets involve sexual abuse. The book reassures readers they will never be blamed for what happened or for sharing the “secret.” Stephenson-Laws approaches a potentially tricky topic with empathy and actionable guidelines, such as encouraging kids to trust their gut by acting on the “twisty” and “yuck” feelings when asked to keep secrets they shouldn’t. Uzoka’s illustrations consist of beautiful watercolor blends in an old-fashioned style featuring diverse ethnicities. Unfortunately, they also reinforce the stereotype that only men can be predators. Despite this, the author’s reassuring words pair well with the images’ soft colors, resulting in a calming yet encouraging approach to a difficult issue.
A thoughtful primer for children that comfortingly and articulately explains a delicate topic.Pub Date: July 7, 2025
ISBN: 9798993974026
Page Count: 42
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Dec. 9, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Wild and wacky.
A picture book from the comedy duo known as Rhett & Link, creators of the online juggernaut Good Mythical Morning.
Lumo is obsessed with chicken fingers; Saffy, who is new to town and anxious about starting school, finds comfort in the only food she likes: buttered spaghetti. The night before the first day of school, a thunderstorm rages, and each kid makes a wish—“to have chicken fingers at school,” in Lumo’s case; Saffy wishes for “the first thing off the top of her head: buttered spaghetti.” File under “Be careful what you wish for.” Lumo’s and Saffy’s respective physical changes (chicken fingers for fingers, spaghetti for hair) make navigating school a challenge but bring them together in the cafeteria, where they enjoy some new foods—and their new friendship. The plotting could have been sharper: Why do the kids’ bodies suddenly return to normal? And couldn’t the authors have thought up a less old-hat story-ending punch line? Nevertheless, McLaughlin and Neal get by on their charm, and the plot sets up some funny visuals. Salcedo’s cartoony Photoshop art features well-chosen artifacts from a typical kid’s life and captures the mortification of not fitting in, which will be familiar even to readers who have never experienced breaded fingers or noodle hair. Lumo is brown-skinned and dark-haired; Saffy is pale-skinned with disheveled reddish-brown hair.
Wild and wacky. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: June 16, 2026
ISBN: 9780063474154
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperPop/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 23, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2026
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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