Never pedantic, this book encourages a fun, developmentally appropriate way to look at the world.
“Pitter, pitter, pat! Pitter, pitter, pat!...Hey, it’s a pitter, pitter pattern!”
Spots (on a dog), nested diamonds (on the wallpaper), houndstooth (on clothing)—there are so many patterns to see! At first, Hesselberth presents sequences textually with visual support as main character Lu, with light-brown skin and dark-brown hair, helps her friends (a short, black-presenting child and a tall, white-presenting child) remove their wet boots. Then the days of the week carry the narrative along to next Sunday, when Lu can see her friends again. There are patterns to identify in each day’s activity, like the pentagons on a soccer ball, beats in a musical piece, and intricate quilt patterns. Guided identification transitions easily into open questions (“Are there patterns here?”) for nature scenes viewed with Lu’s interracial family. Geometric illustrations are chock full of patterns to spot, but the sweeping two-paged spreads are never overwhelming, partially thanks to strategically juxtaposed colors. Hesselberth includes backmatter on pattern types (repeating vs. growing) and places to find patterns (nature, time, etc.) to prompt further discussions. The text and essential pictures offer bountiful opportunities for reader interaction, whether one-on-one or in a group setting. Young ones can verbally identify or point to their discoveries or participate in rhythmic clapping and repetitive dance moves. There’s lots to discover as well as several methods to access the lesson.
Never pedantic, this book encourages a fun, developmentally appropriate way to look at the world. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 11, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-274123-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on...
Continuing from their acclaimed Those Shoes (2007), Boelts and Jones entwine conversations on money, motives, and morality.
This second collaboration between author and illustrator is set within an urban multicultural streetscape, where brown-skinned protagonist Ruben wishes for a bike like his friend Sergio’s. He wishes, but Ruben knows too well the pressure his family feels to prioritize the essentials. While Sergio buys a pack of football cards from Sonny’s Grocery, Ruben must buy the bread his mom wants. A familiar lady drops what Ruben believes to be a $1 bill, but picking it up, to his shock, he discovers $100! Is this Ruben’s chance to get himself the bike of his dreams? In a fateful twist, Ruben loses track of the C-note and is sent into a panic. After finally finding it nestled deep in a backpack pocket, he comes to a sense of moral clarity: “I remember how it was for me when that money that was hers—then mine—was gone.” When he returns the bill to her, the lady offers Ruben her blessing, leaving him with double-dipped emotions, “happy and mixed up, full and empty.” Readers will be pleased that there’s no reward for Ruben’s choice of integrity beyond the priceless love and warmth of a family’s care and pride.
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on children. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6649-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
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