by Laura Deal ; illustrated by Emma Pedersen ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 6, 2022
A gentle tribute to the power of nature to help regulate difficult feelings.
Wearing a red hoodie and a big frown, a child in a foul mood walks through miserable weather on their way to the ugly place.
The ugly place is where the protagonist goes when “things seem ugly and cloudy in my head and I feel a lot of feelings all at once.” The blues and grays of the accompanying landscapes feel wet and dreary, while inanimate objects look on frowning, their expressions echoing the child’s. The light brown–skinned child slops through the rain and mud, leaving a mucky trail across the wet tundra, to the rocky coast where even the fish in the water frown back. When the child finally looks up, however, they notice the sea gulls overhead, the gentle lapping of waves, and the taste of dried salt on their lips. And just like that, a smile appears on the child’s face as well as on the creatures’ in the water. The rain stops, and nature is now welcoming in its beauty. Text and images work together deftly, using sensory descriptions to evoke both the miserable mood and its transformation. Though this transition from inner turmoil to outer peace comes a bit quickly, the meaning is nevertheless clear: Nature heals the heart. And this child knows it. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gentle tribute to the power of nature to help regulate difficult feelings. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-77227-432-5
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Inhabit Media
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
Share your opinion of this book
More by Laura Deal
BOOK REVIEW
by Laura Deal ; illustrated by Tamara Campeau
BOOK REVIEW
by Laura Deal ; illustrated by Charlene Chua
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 7, 2023
From curds to riches, from meltdown to uplift—this multicourse romp delivers.
A winning wheel of cheddar with braggadocio to match narrates a tale of comeuppance and redemption.
From humble beginnings among kitchen curds living “quiet lives of pasteurization,” the Big Cheese longs to be the best and builds success and renown based on proven skills and dependable results: “I stuck to the things I was good at.” When newcomer Wedge moves to the village of Curds-on-Whey, the Cheese’s star status wobbles and falls. Turns out that quiet, modest Wedge is also multitalented. At the annual Cheese-cathlon, Wedge bests six-time winner Cheese in every event, from the footrace and chess to hat making and bread buttering. A disappointed Cheese throws a full-blown tantrum before arriving at a moment of truth: Self-calming, conscious breathing permits deep relief that losing—even badly—does not result in disaster. A debrief with Wedge “that wasn’t all about me” leads to further realizations: Losing builds empathy for others; obsession with winning obscures “the joy of participating.” The chastened cheddar learns to reserve bragging for lifting up friends, because anyone can be the Big Cheese. More didactic and less pun-rich than previous entries in the Food Group series, this outing nevertheless couples a cheerful refrain with pithy life lessons that hit home. Oswald’s detailed, comical illustrations continue to provide laughs, including a spot with Cheese onstage doing a “CHED” talk.
From curds to riches, from meltdown to uplift—this multicourse romp delivers. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9780063329508
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Share your opinion of this book
More by Jory John
BOOK REVIEW
by Jory John ; illustrated by Pete Oswald
BOOK REVIEW
by Jory John ; illustrated by Olivier Tallec
BOOK REVIEW
by Jory John ; illustrated by Erin Kraan
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Lauren Eldridge ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 20, 2017
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted...
Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.
A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what’s going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a “pig-e-phant” doesn’t come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to “fix [them]selves” on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the “clay mates” is perfectly captured by Petty’s feisty, spot-on dialogue: “This was your idea…and it was a BAD one.” Eldridge’s endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist’s work table to great effect.
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own . (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-316-30311-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
Share your opinion of this book
More by Dev Petty
BOOK REVIEW
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Mike Boldt
BOOK REVIEW
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Mike Boldt
BOOK REVIEW
by Dev Petty ; illustrated by Ana Aranda
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.