A balanced, warmhearted tale about transformation for both kids and parents.
In this debut graphic short story for children, a young boy learns about the divine light within himself
Malachi, a 7-year-old Black child, is sent to his room without dinner to think about his misbehavior. His parents also order him to clean his room. He’s both sad and angry, reflecting that “When I mess up and make a mistake, they scold and punish me. I sometimes wish I had someone to teach me how to be!” Malachi wishes his parents would catch him doing the right thing, and he misses being younger, with no expectations to meet. Instead of cleaning his room, he resentfully puts on pajamas and goes to bed, accompanied by his ankh-wearing Egyptian action figure. “It’s just you and me, King,” he whispers, the ankh glowing as the boy’s eyes close. Then, a shining, white-clad, dark-skinned “heavenly guide” appears to Malachi in response to his desire for a teacher. The angelic being has an encouraging message: the kingdom of heaven is within Malachi; his parents love him and their rules have reasons; and he is blessed. The guide explains how Malachi can meditate and pray to connect with his inner light. Encouraged, Malachi cleans his room; later, his parents apologize for being so harsh and make amends. In her inspirational tale, written in rhyming couplets, Amma provides spiritual affirmations at a level that kids can understand. Malachi gets it immediately, but readers may need more support. Wisely, the story acknowledges that Malachi’s parents also need to change: “We’re no longer calling you a ‘bad boy,’ / That’s just not right to do.” Drumond, a prolific illustrator of children’s books, contributes somewhat stiff and flat digital pictures that offer nice details and contribute to the storytelling. For example, the angelic guide predicts Malachi will be “a very great man” and the boy pictures himself as a distinguished adult with four diplomas on his wall.
A balanced, warmhearted tale about transformation for both kids and parents.Pub Date: Feb. 9, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-73-665761-4
Page Count: 84
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
Not enough tricks to make this a treat.
Another holiday title (How To Catch the Easter Bunny by Adam Wallace, illustrated by Elkerton, 2017) sticks to the popular series’ formula.
Rhyming four-line verses describe seven intrepid trick-or-treaters’ efforts to capture the witch haunting their Halloween. Rhyming roadblocks with toolbox is an acceptable stretch, but too often too many words or syllables in the lines throw off the cadence. Children familiar with earlier titles will recognize the traps set by the costume-clad kids—a pulley and box snare, a “Tunnel of Tricks.” Eventually they accept her invitation to “floss, bump, and boogie,” concluding “the dance party had hit the finale at last, / each dancing monster started to cheer! / There’s no doubt about it, we have to admit: / This witch threw the party of the year!” The kids are diverse, and their costumes are fanciful rather than scary—a unicorn, a dragon, a scarecrow, a red-haired child in a lab coat and bow tie, a wizard, and two space creatures. The monsters, goblins, ghosts, and jack-o'-lanterns, backgrounded by a turquoise and purple night sky, are sufficiently eerie. Still, there isn’t enough originality here to entice any but the most ardent fans of Halloween or the series. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Not enough tricks to make this a treat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-72821-035-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: May 10, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
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