A well-illustrated book with an inspirational message for girls and young women of color.
In this upbeat picture book, an experienced mentor urges girls and young women of color to believe in themselves.
Sims has served as director of the Birmingham, Alabama, chapter of Team Focus, an organization that helps boys and young men find mentors, and in this stand-alone companion to Young King, Young King (2019), he offers advice to female readers who may need a bit of encouragement. “You must always believe in and love yourself, even when no one else does,” he says early on, and on the pages that follow, he gently promotes self-love and self-reliance. “The world will pull you in different directions,” he writes. “Trust yourself! You know what’s right and wrong.” Sims advises girls and young women to set goals and tap into their creativity: “Your actions and reactions will define you, not your intentions or thoughts.” Although self-sufficiency is an overarching theme, he recommends seeking help when needed from “Other Young Queens” and from God: “Trust God, talk to him, and include him in ALL of your plans.” He also encourages them not to lose hope when facing difficulties like loss, anger, or heartbreak. Befitting that cheerful tone, Mills’ illustrations show a happy, bright-eyed, dark-skinned girl in varied everyday situations: doing a yoga pose, speaking in a classroom, dreaming of a diploma. When the text says, “Your actions and reactions will define you, not your intentions or thoughts,” the art shows the girl holding the words “action” and “intent” in her open palms. A handful of images also depict boys, adults, or friends with varied skin tones. Some of the sentiments are familiar—“You can do, and you can be anything you want to be!”—but they bring worthy reminders that everyone could use from time to time. Williams, the author of This Isn’t It (2016), reinforces Sims’ messages in her foreword, which reminds adults that girls need to hear that “they are…beautiful, strong, needed, and absolutely not alone.”
A well-illustrated book with an inspirational message for girls and young women of color.Pub Date: July 7, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-79828-045-4
Page Count: 38
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: May 6, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
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)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
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