Creative teachers, librarians and parents will be able to use this book to start a number of different conversations, but...
By focusing this visually stunning book on “dressing up” rather than on the broader topic of clothing, the authors enjoy the freedom of selecting striking photographs of children dressed in traditional clothing, theatrical costumes and masks and school and sports uniforms.
Engaging, sharp photos, including a Chinese boy dressed as an emperor on the cover, young Nepalese Buddhist monks, a Japanese girl dressed in a beautiful kimono and Israeli Hasidic boys inexplicably wearing red fezzes, appear on boldly colored backgrounds. The lack of contextualizing material begs questions: Are the Israeli boys dressed up for Purim, a Jewish holiday when everyone wears costumes? The Japanese girl is probably dressed for Shichi-go-san, a holiday when 3- and 7-year-old Japanese girls and 5-year-old Japanese boys dress in traditional clothing, but the text (limited to very general short sentences such as: “Around the world, we dress up to have fun! We dance and play…” and “Dressing up means celebrating who we are…”) doesn’t reveal any supporting information. Country names appear on the photos, and there is a world map. The backmatter suggests going to folk festivals and museums, questioning adults about clothing and culture and making simple costumes and masks.
Creative teachers, librarians and parents will be able to use this book to start a number of different conversations, but descriptions of the clothing and their special meanings (if only for adult users) would greatly increase this book’s value. (Informational photo essay. 4-7)Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-58089-416-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011
Readers who’ve never been to Mumbai will want to visit while those who love it will smile.
An ode to urbanism and a love letter to India’s largest city.
When Doma, from Ladakh, a special administrative region in the disputed territory of Kashmir, visits her friend Veda in Mumbai, she misses the mountains of her home. “Tell me something,” asks Veda. “Do the mountains have to be exactly like the ones in Ladakh? Big, brown triangles?” Doma is incredulous; how else would a mountain look? Veda takes her friend by the hand and leads her on a tour of the megalopolis featuring views of both rooftops and a city street from above. Veda takes Doma up a seemingly endless spiral staircase and onto a terrace, from which the pair looks out on Marine Drive, a promenade and beach abutting the Arabian Sea. “Yes! Yes! Yes! We are on top of a mountain in Mumbai,” Doma cheers. Jain’s watercolor paintings are vivid and detailed, reveling in the bustle of the city. The unusual trim—double-page spreads measure 7 inches high by 28 inches wide—gives a sense of sweeping panoramas. One particularly effective spread demands a 90-degree turn of the book to fully appreciate the staircase the girls ascend. Veda and Doma’s journey is punctuated with recognizable landmarks (e.g., the Bandra-Worli Sea Link bridge), making this an excellent book for the armchair traveler as well.
Readers who’ve never been to Mumbai will want to visit while those who love it will smile. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-81-936542-9-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Karadi Tales
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
A clever take on teaching young readers about the justice system.
A bug and a slug appeal to the court to defend their right to marry in this Ruth Bader Ginsburg–inspired picture book.
Celebrations of the work of Ruth Bader Ginsburg seldom involve insects, but the late Supreme Court Justice’s presence as Ruth Bader Ladybug shows just how far her influence reached. Klazkin’s debut picture book opens with a loving couple: Barney the bug, a grasshopper with a ponytail, mustache, and a ball cap, and Sweet Sally the slug, whose blond hair, pearl necklace, and long dress give her a roughly sluglike shape. The pair kiss and cuddle in public, earning them a look of dismay from a bug. “Bugs and slugs do not mix,” a police officer bug reminds them. But they can’t deny their love, so they challenge the law in a court presided over by Ruth Bader Ladybug. After a fierce debate, the law is struck down, and love wins the day. Klazkin’s rhyming couplets generally scan well, although the layout of the text on some pages makes the ends of phrases difficult to find. A glossary offers definitions for more challenging vocabulary words. Laubach’s odd cartoon illustrations are uneven in their mix of human and bug/slug features, although the illustrations of Ruth Bader Ladybug, depicted in a lace collar, are a charming way to honor the justice. Though there are few details about how the court works, the concept of a court ruling on a law is solidly introduced.
A clever take on teaching young readers about the justice system.Pub Date: July 16, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5255-7194-7
Page Count: 52
Publisher: FriesenPress
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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