A cornucopia for cat connoisseurs.
So much is said about heroic dogs, but what about fearless felines?
Hamilton collects the life stories of 30 cats of note. Each is profiled in a single-page bio that highlights its special contribution to history and a full-page, full-color illustration by one of 17 artists. Arranged alphabetically, the accomplished kitties are from all corners of the map and all walks of cat life. There’s Félicette, the first catsronaut, from France; Dewey, the library cat from Iowa that inspired a bestselling book; Scarlett the New York momma cat who saved her kittens from a fire; and Oscar, the first bionic cat, with two prosthetic legs. Cats can even be war heroes, as Pitoutchi, who saved his human in the trenches of World War I, and Pyro, a World War II flying ace, both demonstrate. Interleaved among the biographies are two-page spreads of additional feline facts and kitty trivia—the likes of “Silly Cat Superstitions,” “Mighty Mousers,” and “Feline Muses” to the famous—tied in some way to the bios that precede them. At the outset is a very brief timeline of feline-human interaction from 7500 B.C.E. to 2018; and at the close is a timeline of the profiled pusses, a glossary, furr-ther reading, websites, and author and illustrator bios.
A cornucopia for cat connoisseurs. (Nonfiction. 7-14)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-35583-3
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy.
Through the author’s own childhood diary entries, a seventh grader details her inner life before and after 9/11.
Alyssa’s diary entries start in September 2000, in the first week of her seventh grade year. She’s 11 and dealing with typical preteen concerns—popularity and anxiety about grades—along with other things more particular to her own life. She’s shuffling between Queens and Manhattan to share time between her divorced parents and struggling with thick facial hair and classmates who make her feel like she’s “not a whole person” due to her mixed White and Puerto Rican heritage. Alyssa is endlessly earnest and awkward as she works up the courage to talk to her crush, Alejandro; gushes about her dreams of becoming a shoe designer; and tries to solve her burgeoning unibrow problem. The diaries also have a darker side, as a sense of impending doom builds as the entries approach 9/11, especially because Alyssa’s father works in finance in the World Trade Center. As a number of the diary entries are taken directly from the author’s originals, they effortlessly capture the loud, confusing feelings middle school brings out. The artwork, in its muted but effective periwinkle tones, lends a satisfying layer to the diary’s accessible and delightful format.
An authentic and moving time capsule of middle school angst, trauma, and joy. (author's note) (Graphic memoir. 8-13)Pub Date: Aug. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-250-77427-9
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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