GIANT-SIZED BUTTERFLIES ON MY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

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GIANT-SIZED BUTTERFLIES ON MY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Name: GIANT-SIZED BUTTERFLIES ON MY FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
Author: Justin Roberts
ISBN: 9780525516439

by Justin Roberts ; illustrated by Paola Escobar ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 30, 2023

Will help children conquer their jitters while preparing to go back to school—or anytime.

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First days are always hard.

Despite Mom’s reassurance that the first day of school will be fine, a child has “giant-sized butterflies.” “How am I to know how it will go on my first day?” the young narrator asks. As Mom drives the child to school, the child asks if Mom can stay with them. Mom explains that everyone worries about new beginnings—even grown-ups. The child’s parents “had giant-sized butterflies” when they welcomed the child into their lives. But those butterflies aren’t a bad thing, Mom notes. They’re here to be our guides and to help us learn and grow. Now feeling much braver and more confident, the child strides toward the school and heads inside. Escobar’s realistic digital illustrations depict swirls of butterflies, rendered in a crayonlike scrawl, following the child to the breakfast table and to the car. As the narrative continues, they become bigger and bolder until at last we see the child with a huge pair of butterfly wings. Each page is filled with rich colors and details, and we see that the other students are trailed by their own butterflies—welcome reassurance that everyone grapples with nervousness. The child and their parents are brown-skinned; their community is a diverse one. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Will help children conquer their jitters while preparing to go back to school—or anytime. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: May 30, 2023

ISBN: 9780525516439

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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I'LL BE YOUR POLAR BEAR
by Justin Roberts ; illustrated by Chuck Groenink

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HEDGEHOGS DON'T WEAR UNDERWEAR

by Marissa Valdez ; illustrated by Marissa Valdez ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2025

Sure to have little ones giggling.

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Jacques is a hedgehog with a big secret: “I wear real, bona fide underwear.”

Our narrator received a mysterious package one day; an illustration shows a pair of underwear tied to a balloon with a note “from the Universe” floating down into Jacques’ burrow. Hedgehogs don’t wear underwear, however. Will Jacques be shunned? Jacques worries but comes to a decision: “I have to wear them. When I do I feel special.” Determined, Jacques, who’s been invited to a party, makes a dramatic entrance, with undies in hand. Jacques’ declaration (“I WEAR UNDERWEAR”) is met with remarks of dismay, before another hedgehog opens up about similar fears and shows off a pair of cowboy boots. More hedgehogs introduce themselves with their own confessions. The story ends with Jacques unveiling a painting of the underwear in a gallery filled with hedgehogs wearing all sorts of attire. Though the book is simple in plot, characters, and setting, it wins in its balance of bathroom humor, dramatic storytelling, and celebrations of individual expression. French words are peppered throughout, adding to the fun without detracting from the story for those unfamiliar with the language. The cartoonish illustrations brim with fun; Valdez relies heavily on geometric shapes (triangle noses for the hedgehogs; huge circles for their eyes). Details such as speech bubbles and recurring turtle and snake characters contribute to the outlandish humor.

Sure to have little ones giggling. (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: April 1, 2025

ISBN: 9781250814388

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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MAYA'S BIG QUESTION
by Meena Harris ; illustrated by Marissa Valdez

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WHO'S IN CHARGE?
by Stephanie Allain & Jenny Klion ; illustrated by Marissa Valdez

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HATTIE HARMONY: OPENING NIGHT
by Elizabeth Olsen & Robbie Arnett ; illustrated by Marissa Valdez

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)