Ruthie loves her miniature assortment of dinosaurs, trains, ponies, teddy bears, seashells and a dollhouse-size tea set. Finding a teeny tiny camera on the school playground during recess, Ruthie is thrilled to claim it as her own. Happily taking pictures of everything in sight, Ruthie tries to take Martin’s picture when he informs her that she is holding his camera and he wants it back. A shouting match ensues with each child claiming ownership and Ruthie declaring, in an outright lie, “It’s mine!” “I got it for MY birthday!” Wise teacher Mrs. Olsen steps in just in time to call a truce, put the camera in her desk and defer the situation for tomorrow. Rankin addresses a common playground issue through the thoroughly believable behavior of her little fox’s full range of emotional responses, from exhilarating happiness to denial, lying, guilt, embarrassment and finally remorse. Light, crisp pencil and acrylics on watercolor paper offer visual perspective to a well-written demonstrative text through a varied set of anthropomorphized animals. Ruthie’s self-reflection and ultimate candid decision to apologize and admit wrongdoing is tenderly rewarded with a teacher’s praise and respect. Direct poignancy will spark musing and discussion in every early childhood classroom. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: July 1, 2007
ISBN: 978-1-59990-010-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2007
Visually appealing but doesn’t capture the spirit of namaste.
What does it mean to say namaste?
This picture book attempts to explain this traditional, formal greeting used in South and Southeast Asia to welcome people and bid them farewell—in particular, as a way to show respect to elders. A child with dark hair, dark eyes, deep-brown skin, and a bindi on their forehead goes to a market with their caregiver and buys a potted plant to give their lonely, lighter-skinned neighbor. Vibrant, textured illustrations depict a blossoming friendship between the little one and the neighbor, while a series of statements describe what namaste means to the child. However, the disjointed text makes the concept difficult for young readers to grasp. Some statements describe namaste in its most literal sense (“Namaste is ‘I bow to you.’ " “Namaste is joining your palms together”), while others are more nebulous (“A yoga pose. A practice.” “Namaste calms your heart when things aren’t going right”). The lack of backmatter deprives readers of the cultural context and significance of this greeting as well as knowledge of the countries and cultures where it is used. Moreover, the book doesn’t convey the deep respect that this greeting communicates. The absence of culturally specific details and the framing of namaste as a concept that could apply to almost any situation ultimately obscure its meaning and use. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Visually appealing but doesn’t capture the spirit of namaste. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Oct. 11, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1783-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022
An exuberant dog’s-eye view of friendship and forgiveness.
An energetic puppy narrates a day with her boy.
In the morning, she licks the face of her “best friend,” a boy with light brown skin who uses a manual wheelchair, “glad that [they’re] a pair.” In quick, rhythmic rhymes, she bounds along—chasing a cat, stealing a Frisbee, snatching a hot dog from disgruntled pigeons, and scaring a snake—to the titular refrain: “Best day ever!” But the tune changes when she rolls on a “nice dead fish.” “Down, girl! You get off me! / Phewy, what’s that smell?” yells her boy as she gazes up with heart-meltingly mournful eyes. “Not the best day ever,” she laments as she endures a sudsy bath. And when she accidentally knocks over a lamp, her boy’s exasperation is finally too much: “Worst day ever.” Soon, however, the boy comforts the dejected pup, apologizing for shouting: “I know it wasn’t cool. / I think we need more lessons. / We’ll go to training school.” The friendship restored, a huge, jubilant “Best day ever!” arcs across a sunset-tinged double-page spread, the exclamation point finished off with a tennis ball the narrator has leapt to catch. Illustrator Nixon, herself a wheelchair user, captures the bond between boy and dog with bold lines, bright, sun-laced colors, and endearing expressions, tenderly demonstrating that love is unconditional—a message that will reassure readers as well as their furry friends. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An exuberant dog’s-eye view of friendship and forgiveness. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: June 29, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-328-98783-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
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