Not a history: a celebration of some of the world’s cold, milky confections, familiar and novel.
A mouthwatering global tour of some favorite frozen treats.
Each spread in this book features children around the world sitting down to a host of desserts. Leo and his parents have hazelnut gelato served in a warm brioche in Italy, Neza eagerly anticipates soft serve in Rwanda, Omar and Papa serve baklava-sprinkled gelato in their gelateria in Libya, Zara and Syed buy mango-flavored kulfi in India, Uncle John cheers up a disappointed Tui with hokey pokey in New Zealand, and children at a birthday party eat sundaes in the U.S. This last scene is realistic (one small child has a grubby hand plunged into the chocolate sprinkles). Smaller text offers more context about each sweet treat. Some readers might feel surfeited, but no brain freeze will follow the informative descriptions. A world map at the end locates the treats, and a final page explains the differences among four types of frozen dessert. The illustrations use mostly soft pastel color blocks that are free of lines as well as simplified forms and facial expressions. People are diverse throughout. A final scene depicts eight of the far-flung children picnicking together with their treats. Parental warning: The possibility of ice cream for breakfast is posed as a valid option. All in all, ice cream lovers will emerge satisfied—and eager to try out some potentially unfamiliar confections.
Not a history: a celebration of some of the world’s cold, milky confections, familiar and novel. (author’s note) (Picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: March 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781534113084
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
Quietly contemplative and thoroughly lovely.
A child finds adventure and a change of perspective on a dreary day.
Clouds cover everything in a palette of unending gray, creating a sense of ennui and gloom. A child stands alone, head down, feeling as gray as the day, and decides to ride through town on an old bike. Pops of color throughout the grayscale illustrations go unnoticed—there are yellow leaves scattered about, and the parking lot is filled with bright yellow buses, but this child, who has skin the grayish white of the page, sees only the empty playground, creaky swings, a sad merry-go-round, and lonely seesaws. But look—there’s a narrow winding path just beyond the fence, something to explore. There are things to be noticed, leaves to be crunched, and discoveries to be made. Imagination takes over, along with senses of wonderment and calm, as the child watches a large blue bird fly over the area. The ride home is quite different, joyful and filled with color previously ignored, reaffirming the change in the rider’s outlook. The descriptive, spare text filled with imagery and onomatopoeia is well aligned with well-rendered art highlighting all the colors that brighten the not-so-gray day and allowing readers to see what the protagonist struggles to understand, that “anything can happen…on a gray day.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Quietly contemplative and thoroughly lovely. (Picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781797210896
Page Count: 44
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
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