by Lemony Snicket ; illustrated by Lisa Brown ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 2, 2017
A lovely, untrammeled look at a pet’s afterlife.
The ghost of a pet goldfish searches for a new home in this newest picture book from Snicket.
“Goldfish Ghost was born on the surface of the water in a bowl on the dresser in a boy’s room.” So begins a sweet and somber tale of a literal fish out of water, who finds the afterlife exceedingly lonely. A pale umbra carried by the wind, Goldfish Ghost floats quietly (and perpetually upside down) out of his bowl in search of conversation and company. But “it can be hard to find the company you are looking for,” and though he comes upon a flock of shrieking birds over the pier, a crowd of sunbathers on the beach, and even several ghosts of sea creatures hovering above the ocean, none feel quite right. Late in the day, just when he has given up, Goldfish Ghost at last hears a friendly voice of another lonely ghost hoping to find a friend, and settled atop a lighthouse, the two make excellent company. Although they occupy the same space on the page as their living counterparts, the ghostly specters (marked by their solid white coloring) are suffused with quiet emotion as they move between spreads. Mirroring the text’s unhurried and occasionally awkwardly paced narrative, Brown expertly and with deceptive simplicity sets the questing ghosts apart from the frenetic bustle of the living world.
A lovely, untrammeled look at a pet’s afterlife. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: May 2, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62672-507-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Neal Porter/Roaring Brook
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
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by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
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by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
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