Dreams may or may not come true, but the opportunity to have them is wonderful.
A young girl finds her inner beauty in music and dance.
Diana is white, short, and chunky, and she wears glasses. She is not a good student at school, unable to concentrate, especially in math. It is in a psychologist’s office that her life turns around. When the doctor steps out to talk to her mother, he leaves the radio on, and Diana is literally swept off her feet as “her body moved gracefully, following the rhythm of the music.” The next logical and prescribed step is ballet school, and now Diana smiles, does well in math, and imagines herself performing on stage—“maybe.” Lozano’s little tale, originally published in Spain, is a lesson for children in both self-worth and not allowing body types to restrict development. And while, realistically, a child looking like Diana would most likely have a difficult time succeeding in ballet, the author graciously allows for participation at a student’s level and the opportunity to dream. His loose, fine-lined figures with cartoon-style faces are set against a white background. They depict one schoolmate in a wheelchair and several diverse children. The ballerinas she dreams of dancing with are tall and lithe; one is a person of color.
Dreams may or may not come true, but the opportunity to have them is wonderful. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-77321-248-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Annick Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 4, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The book’s simplicity guarantees achievement for beginning readers.
Two kids, probably siblings, explore their surrounding world through magnification.
While the older one remains inside with a microscope, the younger prefers the outside, examining all with a large hand-held magnifying glass. “I see,” the kid declares, focusing on several insects and animals while peering through the glass. A large, blue-black ant grins up through the glass as the child states, “I see an ant.” A butterfly, a snail, and robins’ eggs similarly appear through the glass, all narrated in the short, patterned text. Arriving home with discoveries crawling and flapping behind, the explorer now declares, “We see,” to the older child. The minimalist text is perfect for emerging readers, allowing children the ability to successfully read a whole book. Each repetitive sentence with its additional new word is coupled with recognizable picture cues to help in decoding. Cepeda’s characteristically energetic artwork offers sharp-edged, jagged lines that give it a scratch-art look. The siblings are dressed nearly identically, in blue shorts and red polo shirts, and they have tousled brown hair, beige skin, and big smiles.
The book’s simplicity guarantees achievement for beginning readers. (Picture book/early reader. 4-6)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-8234-4504-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2019
Unrealistic in several ways but good at least for sniggers, this follow-up to Bear in Underwear (2010) features plenty of views of Bear on the soccer pitch clad in nothing below the waist but undies. The tighty whities of the previous episode give way to dinky pinkies after Bear washes them with his red jersey, but since they’re his lucky underwear he bears the continuing mockery of the opposing squad—“You look like a girl!” “You stink and your shorts are pink!” etc.—to score the winning goal. Not only do the losers change their opinion (“Wow, pink’s alright!”), but Bear’s own team members all don pink BVDs in solidarity: “Pink isn’t yucky! It’s super cool and super lucky!” While there is some charm to the notion of a soccer team that includes a beaver, a hedgehog and Big Foot, it isn't enough to sustain a whole lot of investment on the part of young readers. Logically minded children will wonder why Bear’s lucky (and still-white—this is before the laundry tragedy) undies are the only things gleaming white as Bear and his teammates stand, "covered in mud, including Bear and his lucky underwear." A sliding panel on the front cover that drops Bear’s shorts with the pull of a tab is the high (low) point of this dismal one-joker. (Picture book. 4-6)
Pub Date: April 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-60905-077-1
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Blue Apple
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2011
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