Another amusing visit with Anastasia Krupnik, new 12 and in desperate need of money (for what is not said). So Anastasia advertises herself as a companion—but, to her horror, the rich old lady who hires her puts her to work as a maid instead. And as site mangles a spoon in the disposal on the first day, she can't quit until she's paid off its $35.00 value in labor. (As Mrs. Bellingham, her employer, refers to the incident as a "debacle," Anastasia believes throughout the story that she is paying for a mangled "bockle.") But during her service Anastasia becomes friends with Mrs. Bellingham's rebellious granddaughter Daphne, and together they plot revenge on the old lady: Daphne steals a pile of leftover invitations to her grandmother's upcoming charity bash and sends them to a few of the town's outcasts and underprivileged. The girls repent too late, on learning that the charity is the children's hospital in which Anastasia's little brother has just been a patient—and then try desperately, with the predictable hilarious results, to spot the undesirables and remove them from the party. After Daphne mistakenly asks the mayor to leave, Mrs. Bellingham questions the girls and concludes: "Surely it is apparent by new that those people, whatever their problems, know how to behave ata party.' Along with a Roots trip Anastasia takes with her father to the poor-but-charming (new Italian) Boston neighborhood where he grew up, it all goes to inculcate in Anastasia some corny and unexamined American myths. But as Lowry uses these egalitarian lessons to anchor the story, not vice versa, readers won't feel manipulated.
Pub Date: Oct. 25, 1982
ISBN: 0440402905
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 17, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1982
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
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts.
In this latest slice in the Food Group series, Humble Pie learns to stand up to a busy friend who’s taking advantage of his pal’s hard work on the sidelines.
Jake the Cake and Humble Pie are good friends. Where Pie is content to toil in the background, Jake happily shines in the spotlight. Alert readers will notice that Pie’s always right there, too, getting A-pluses and skiing expertly just behind—while also doing the support work that keeps every school and social project humming. “Fact: Nobody notices pie when there’s cake nearby!” When the two friends pair up for a science project, things begin well. But when the overcommitted Jake makes excuse after excuse, showing up late or not at all, a panicked Pie realizes that they won’t finish in time. When Jake finally shows up on the night before the project’s due, Pie courageously confronts him. “And for once, I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it.” The friends talk it out and collaborate through the night for the project’s successful presentation in class the next day. John and Oswald’s winning recipe—plentiful puns and delightful visual jokes—has yielded another treat here. The narration does skew didactic as it wraps up: “There’s nothing wrong with having a tough conversation, asking for help, or making sure you’re being treated fairly.” But it’s all good fun, in service of some gentle lessons about social-emotional development.
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780063469730
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
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