Although the story of a woman founding a university in Morocco in 859 has fascinating possibilities, this app is little more than a picture book with one touch-activated feature per page.
Fatima used her wealth to build a great mosque and school, which some say is the world’s oldest university. The creators cite one major historical account for the basic story of Fatima’s youth and maturation, but they do not make such claims for the visual details, which are painterly but simple. Tapping a white star initiates such simple actions as a door opening onto a garden and a curtain closing to symbolize the heroine’s father’s death, with the best feature being the call to prayer on the first page. By touching three golden stars on each page, users can select French, English or Arabic text, request reading aloud, see definitions of selected words, switch easily to other pages, play games, change fonts or hear sound effects. While the male English-language reader has a voice reminiscent of old educational films, the French and Arabic readers sound less forced. As the narrators speak, pink rectangles highlight each word, creating a very busy page. Music and other sound effects are loud and distracting. Games include four puzzles, each with three levels of difficulty and four coloring pages with a link to buy additional ones. The finished pages can be emailed or sent to Facebook. While not heavily interactive, this picture-book biography of a Muslim woman known for her devotion to both religion and education may be useful for audiences interested in Islam and women’s history. (iPad storybook app. 6-9)
Pub Date: July 20, 2012
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Masarat App
Review Posted Online: Aug. 28, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2012
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
Gooney Bird Greene (with a silent E) is not your average second grader. She arrives in Mrs. Pidgeon’s class announcing: “I’m your new student and I just moved here from China. I want a desk right smack in the middle of the room, because I like to be right smack in the middle of everything.” Everything about her is unusual and mysterious—her clothes, hairstyles, even her lunches. Since the second graders have never met anyone like Gooney Bird, they want to hear more about her. Mrs. Pidgeon has been talking to the class about what makes a good story, so it stands to reason that Gooney will get her chance. She tells a series of stories that explain her name, how she came from China on a flying carpet, how she got diamond earrings at the prince’s palace, and why she was late for school (because she was directing a symphony orchestra). And her stories are “absolutely true.” Actually, they are explainable and mesh precisely with the teacher’s lesson, more important, they are a clever device that exemplify the elements of good storytelling and writing and also demonstrate how everyone can turn everyday events into stories. Savvy teachers should take note and add this to their shelf of “how a story is made” titles. Gooney Bird’s stories are printed in larger type than the narrative and the black-and-white drawings add the right touch of sauciness (only the cover is in color). A hybrid of Harriet, Blossom, and Anastasia, irrepressible Gooney Bird is that rare bird in children’s fiction: one that instantly becomes an amusing and popular favorite. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-618-23848-4
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2002
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