A beautiful and thoughtful message woven into a brief yet poignant story.
Daniel becomes curious about his parents’ mysterious early morning outings.
After observing his parents carrying boxes in the snow on several occasions, Daniel asks his mother and his older siblings, Ezra and Leah. He’s told that his parents “went out and about.” Not satisfied with this vague answer, Daniel is determined to discover the truth, but after overhearing a conversation between his neighbor Mrs. Cohen, who recently lost her job, and his mother, he realizes that his parents have been secretly leaving the Cohens food and other necessities before the weekly Shabbat observance. Daniel remembers a time when his grandmother was ill and a box of treats was left on the family’s porch without a card; his mother explained, “Surprise acts of kindness are the best.” The Maimonides quote that opens the book—“Giving is most blessed when the donor remains completely anonymous”—feels particularly fitting now as Daniel joins his father early the next morning, carrying a box to the Cohens’ porch with a simple note: “Shabbat Shalom.” Though simple, the story imparts an important lesson, one that young people will easily pick up on. Soft, lovely illustrations depict an observant Jewish home with several Judaic objects prominently displayed amid snowy winter suburban scenes. The author’s note explains that Maimonides was a 12th-century rabbi known for his “eight levels of Tzedakah,” or giving. Characters are tan-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A beautiful and thoughtful message woven into a brief yet poignant story. (Picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9798986396545
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kalaniot Books
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books.
Curious about the Big Wide World outside his Sasquatch community, Hugo makes a friend who is of it.
Sasquatch Hugo’s bedroom is inside a cave and possesses the charming feature of a small stream running through it that he can sail his little toy boat on. It’s cool, but he yearns to see the Big Wide World. When he asks his smart friend Gigi if a Sasquatch might become a sailor, she says it’s possible but would be difficult—the primary rule of their people is to not be seen by Humans. Then, in everyone’s favorite Hide and Go Sneak class, which is held outside, a Human appears; Hugo laughs at the sight, drawing Human attention in a taboo-breaking mistake. Shortly after, Hugo’s toy boat floats into the cave with a Human toy—soon, it’s facilitating a pen-pal–type relationship that’s derailed when Hugo confesses to being a Sasquatch and Human Boone, a budding cryptozoologist, doesn’t believe him. How Hugo and Boone resolve this misapprehension and become friends in a joint search for the Ogopogo concludes this series opener. Potter keeps the third-person narrative tightly focused on Hugo’s perspective, and the details she uses to flesh out the Sasquatch world are delightfully playful. Sala’s drawings depict a homey Sasquatch cavern community, Boone as a freckled, white boy, and Hugo as a hairily benevolent behemoth.
A charming friendship story and great setup for future books. (final art unseen) (Fantasy. 5-9)Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4197-2859-4
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2018
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