The perfect text for both budding activists and children interested in what Vice President Harris was like as a child.
Before she was the first biracial, Black and South Asian female vice president of the United States, Kamala Harris was a little girl with big dreams.
One morning, Kamala and her sister, Maya, look out the window of their apartment and realize that their building is missing something essential: a playground! Following their mother’s advice, Kamala writes (and Maya illustrates) a letter to the landlord asking for one in their building’s courtyard. When they deliver their letter, the landlord immediately says no—but Kamala and Maya won’t take that for an answer. After getting permission to build the playground themselves, Kamala, Maya, and the other kids in their building get organized. At first, most of the adults are too busy or too distracted to help them, and all they hear is no. But then Mr. Green says that maybe he could get materials for a sandbox—and, as far as Kamala and Maya are concerned, maybes can become yeses. By the end of the book, through ingenuity, perseverance, and cooperation, Maya and Kamala don’t just have their playground: They also have the confidence they need to become lifelong public servants. In this sunnily illustrated picture book, author Harris—Vice President Harris’ niece and Maya Harris’ daughter—imagines the details of a true story her mother told her growing up. The clear and readable storyline deftly balances optimism with the challenges of community organizing.
The perfect text for both budding activists and children interested in what Vice President Harris was like as a child. (author's note) (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-06-293740-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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