YOU BE YOU

Name: YOU BE YOU
Author: Linda Kranz
ISBN: 978-1-58979-666-9

by Linda Kranz & illustrated by Linda Kranz ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 2011

There are many fish in the sea—and they are all different.

Adri, a winsome fish, spends the day exploring, and as he heads home, he can’t help but notice variety in the assortment of finned creatures that surround him. In this companion to the earlier Only One You (2006), which presented Chicken Soup–type advice to the same young fish, Kranz escapes didacticism and provides young readers with an appealing look at diversity. Primarily focused on opposites such as right and left, up and down, big and tiny, smooth and spiny, the bouncy, rhymed text points out differences, while colorful fish swim through the pages illustrating the aforementioned variations. If there is a flaw in Kranz’s stylistic rockfish, it is that the differences are not always obvious, as all of the fish have a similar look, but this will serve to make children examine the pictures more closely. Presented with clarity, the distinctions are nicely summarized by Adri himself when he returns to his parents: “There are so many of us…We all have something special that only we can share.” Youngsters will enjoy the catchiness of the text and the lively nature of the illustrations, while appreciating the concepts found within, and parallels can easily be drawn to differences of all sorts.

A good choice to help children consider similarities and differences. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011

ISBN: 978-1-58979-666-9

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011

Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

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Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.

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YOUR BABY'S FIRST WORD WILL BE DADA

by Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2015

A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.

A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.

Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)

Pub Date: June 9, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015

Categories: CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings.

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THE CRAYONS GO BACK TO SCHOOL

by Drew Daywalt ; illustrated by Oliver Jeffers ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 16, 2023

The Crayons head back to class in this latest series entry.

Daywalt’s expository text lays out the basics as various Crayons wave goodbye to the beach, choose a first-day outfit, greet old friends, and make new ones. As in previous outings, the perennially droll illustrations and hand-lettered Crayon-speak drive the humor. The ever wrapperless Peach, opining, “What am I going to wear?” surveys three options: top hat and tails, a chef’s toque and apron, and a Santa suit. New friends Chunky Toddler Crayon (who’s missing a bite-sized bit of their blue point) and Husky Toddler Crayon speculate excitedly on their common last name: “I wonder if we’re related!” White Crayon, all but disappearing against the page’s copious white space, sits cross-legged reading a copy of H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man. And Yellow and Orange, notable for their previous existential argument about the color of the sun, find agreement in science class: Jupiter, clearly, is yellow AND orange. Everybody’s excited about art class—“Even if they make a mess. Actually…ESPECIALLY if they make a mess!” Here, a spread of crayoned doodles of butterflies, hearts, and stars is followed by one with fulsome scribbles. Fans of previous outings will spot cameos from Glow in the Dark and yellow-caped Esteban (the Crayon formerly known as Pea Green). (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Nothing new here but a nonetheless congenial matriculant in publishing’s autumnal rite of back-to-school offerings. (Picture book. 4-6)