A purpose piece without a clear purpose.
Make-A-Wish creates a perfect day for a kid with a serious illness.
Mark, white and blond, stays in the hospital for long stretches because “he has bad cells in his blood.” One day the wish fairies arrive, and Mark wishes “to catch bad guys.” On his special day with firefighters (teaching him to be brave) and police officers, Mark climbs a high ladder, shoots a fire hose, and handcuffs his father. Then a call comes in: there’s a break-in at a hamburger stand. Whether that break-in is real or arranged by the wish fairies (why are Mark and the police wearing balaclavas?), the ending’s safe and comical, though it hinges on a mocking caricature of fat people. Mark’s day is full of grins; not all readers would feel such safety and glee around police, but Mark sure does. Timmermans’ stiff, somewhat cartoony illustrations are emotionally cold, somehow conveying the characters’ fun without offering it to readers. In an unfortunate visual trope of Asian characters, fireman Liang’s eyes appear closed. The stodgy prose offers lessons to readers (classmates can’t visit Mark, but “a nice drawing is always a good idea!”) but never really explains why the wish fairies are a big deal. While serious childhood illness is rare fodder for picture books, the level of seriousness here is underplayed until the author’s note—a section readers often skip—that explains that Make-A-Wish serves kids with “life-threatening medical conditions.”
A purpose piece without a clear purpose. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 13, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-60537-335-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clavis
Review Posted Online: April 16, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2017
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on...
Continuing from their acclaimed Those Shoes (2007), Boelts and Jones entwine conversations on money, motives, and morality.
This second collaboration between author and illustrator is set within an urban multicultural streetscape, where brown-skinned protagonist Ruben wishes for a bike like his friend Sergio’s. He wishes, but Ruben knows too well the pressure his family feels to prioritize the essentials. While Sergio buys a pack of football cards from Sonny’s Grocery, Ruben must buy the bread his mom wants. A familiar lady drops what Ruben believes to be a $1 bill, but picking it up, to his shock, he discovers $100! Is this Ruben’s chance to get himself the bike of his dreams? In a fateful twist, Ruben loses track of the C-note and is sent into a panic. After finally finding it nestled deep in a backpack pocket, he comes to a sense of moral clarity: “I remember how it was for me when that money that was hers—then mine—was gone.” When he returns the bill to her, the lady offers Ruben her blessing, leaving him with double-dipped emotions, “happy and mixed up, full and empty.” Readers will be pleased that there’s no reward for Ruben’s choice of integrity beyond the priceless love and warmth of a family’s care and pride.
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on children. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6649-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind.
The cool beans again step up to do a timorous fellow legume a fava…this time at the pool.
Will a rash decision to tackle the multistory super-slide lead to another embarrassing watery fail for our shy protagonist? Nope, for up the stairs right behind comes a trio of cool beans, each a different type and color, all clad in nothing but dark shades. They make an offer: “It’s not as scary if you go with friends!” As the knobby nerd explains once the thrilling ride down is done, “They all realized that I just needed some encouragement and support.” Just to make sure that both cool and uncool readers get the message, the narrator lets us know that “there are plenty of kind folks who have my back. They’re always there when I need them.” The beany bonhomie doesn’t end at the bottom of the slide, with all gliding down to the shallow end of the pool (“3 INCHES. NO DIVING”) for a splashy finale. This latest early reader starring characters from John and Oswald’s immensely popular Food Group series will be a hit with fans. Fun accessories, such as a bean who rocks pink cat-eye frames, add some pizzazz to the chromatically and somatotypically varied cast.
Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind. (Easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780063329560
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
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