Heavy on emotion but light on information.
Gentle, inviting pictures evoke empathy as they tell a story both happy and sad.
Jess, a brown-skinned kid, encounters an unhoused refugee outside a storefront. Though Jess’s light-skinned mother is comfortable first acknowledging, then talking with brown-skinned Grace, who wears a headscarf, Jess feels uneasy, thinking her “strange.” But Grace’s cat, Luna, helps spark a friendship. Jess and her mother prepare care packages for Grace and Luna, and, in turn, Grace shares her story: a journey through tyranny, hardship, and devastating loss, portrayed via evocative illustrations juxtaposed with joyful, loving memories. While Grace’s words, perhaps as understood by Jess, are light on details, illustrations tell a much deeper story of what Grace has experienced. Jess and her mother continue to visit, but when winter comes, Grace and Luna are no longer camped outside the storefront. Jess is concerned until a box of gifts appears, letting Jess and Mom know that Grace is safe. Grace’s story is nuanced, and readers will appreciate the depth of emotion conveyed by the illustrations. These provide an entry for conversation about the complexities of poverty, trauma, emigration, and inadequate support for unhoused people. The comforting ending, however, feels overly simplistic and misses an opportunity to further the conversation with more context about forced migration and support. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Heavy on emotion but light on information. (Picture book. 4-9)Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2023
ISBN: 9798765608326
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Andersen Press USA
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2023
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books.
Curious about the Big Wide World outside his Sasquatch community, Hugo makes a friend who is of it.
Sasquatch Hugo’s bedroom is inside a cave and possesses the charming feature of a small stream running through it that he can sail his little toy boat on. It’s cool, but he yearns to see the Big Wide World. When he asks his smart friend Gigi if a Sasquatch might become a sailor, she says it’s possible but would be difficult—the primary rule of their people is to not be seen by Humans. Then, in everyone’s favorite Hide and Go Sneak class, which is held outside, a Human appears; Hugo laughs at the sight, drawing Human attention in a taboo-breaking mistake. Shortly after, Hugo’s toy boat floats into the cave with a Human toy—soon, it’s facilitating a pen-pal–type relationship that’s derailed when Hugo confesses to being a Sasquatch and Human Boone, a budding cryptozoologist, doesn’t believe him. How Hugo and Boone resolve this misapprehension and become friends in a joint search for the Ogopogo concludes this series opener. Potter keeps the third-person narrative tightly focused on Hugo’s perspective, and the details she uses to flesh out the Sasquatch world are delightfully playful. Sala’s drawings depict a homey Sasquatch cavern community, Boone as a freckled, white boy, and Hugo as a hairily benevolent behemoth.
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books. (final art unseen) (Fantasy. 5-9)Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2859-4
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle...
Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine’s experience as she struggles to realize her vision.
First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: “[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn’t turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she “tinkers,” “wrenches,” “fiddles,” “examines,” “stares” and “tweaks.” Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner’s through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant.
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-55453-704-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
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