An inspiring, beautifully illustrated, if occasionally uneven, portrayal of inner strength.
A young child goes on a magical adventure to find his self-confidence.
Elliot is ready to end the day and go to bed, but his adventures are just beginning. As he falls asleep, the young Black boy finds himself transported to a dark, lonely wood. He is so scared that he begins to cry, only stopping when he hears a mysterious voice whisper his name through the trees. It isn’t until a moment later that the voice, which sounds like his mother, tells him, “Say what you have, you’ll have what you say. You have just what you need to find your way.” At first, Elliot doesn’t understand this message; he feels as lost as ever. Slowly, a mantra of his mother’s comes to mind (“Words are magic!”), and he realizes that he has the power to conjure light, a compass, and more to help guide him back to his parents’ loving arms. The lessons Elliot learns are that he must believe in himself, and that the answers to his problems have been within him all along. However, because Elliot’s self-doubt wasn’t adequately established in the beginning of the story, the impact of this triumph is somewhat diminished. Still, his realization is powerful, and his actions are well supported by the illustrations (credited to RIPE Publishing House) that exquisitely depict the sylvan night and the family’s radiant love. The play between light and dark brings out Elliot’s own luminosity as he learns to believe in himself, while small marks indicating movement bring energy to the page. This is Jackson’s first literary work for children and would best be shared with preschool and kindergarten fans of books like I Am Every Good Thing (2020).
An inspiring, beautifully illustrated, if occasionally uneven, portrayal of inner strength.Pub Date: April 20, 2023
ISBN: 9798987911402
Page Count: 40
Publisher: RIPE Publishing House
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Only for dedicated fans of the series.
When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.
“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.
Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4894-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
