A gentle, kid-friendly study on genes that doesn’t skimp on educational heft.
In Boyer’s debut picture book, a young boy explains how genes—and gene mutations—define our physical characteristics and make everyone special.
The first-person narrator is a light-skinned young boy with prominent rosy cheeks and a sunny outlook on life. He relates to readers how genes create a unique blueprint inside each person and ultimately determine our physical traits, including curly or straight hair, the shape of a smile, and one’s general stature. The boy also talks of gene mutations (defined afterward in a glossary of relevant terms) and explains his own rare condition: “Sometimes I wonder who I’ll be, / and if the world has room for me. / But then I remember what I always knew: / Rare doesn’t mean wrong— / it just means few.” He notes that superheroes, too, obtain their powers from mutations and asserts that all differences should be embraced. The boy then plays alongside an equally vivacious brown-skinned girl who, like him, shines from within through a heart-shaped emblem on her chest. The author narrates by way of unmetered rhyming couplets, which are accessible and a good way to convey the book’s core message. The book doesn’t include examples of nonfictional gene mutations, and the exact nature of the boy’s condition is neither stated in the text nor obvious from Piwowarski’s dreamy two-page-spread digital illustrations, which instead feature pastel backdrops and a kind of hazy, holistic optimism.
A gentle, kid-friendly study on genes that doesn’t skimp on educational heft.Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2026
ISBN: 9798993195902
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Yuni Press
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones.
Not even the arrival of autumn can cool down this impetuous squirrel.
Although Squirrel is skeptical about Bird’s vegetable patch (“Nothing is HAPPENING!”), Bird does produce five (count them) lovely pumpkins. Squirrel picks out a favorite: “The enormous orange one.” Bird hints that Squirrel might want to help out; Squirrel sets out to fetch some work gloves and returns to find only four pumpkins. The frequently distracted Squirrel notices more gourds disappearing and leaps to the conclusion that a thief is near. And where’s Bird?! Has Squirrel’s pal also been taken? Diligently detecting, Squirrel finds clues—peck marks, footprints, and more—and produces a sketch of the suspect. As readers will guess, each clue turns out to point to one of Squirrel and Bird’s friends. Turns out Bird was delivering pumpkins to their pals while saving the big one to give to “my very best friend,” Squirrel. But why does Squirrel haul it up a tree? “So the Pumpkin Thief can’t find it, of course!” A page of pumpkin facts provides the learning component common to all titles in this series. Once more, readers will enjoy the pleasure of prediction and repetition, Squirrel’s silly persistence, Bird’s generosity, and the vibrant color illustrations, balancing orange with green.
More fun antics to satisfy returning fans and snag new ones. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 28, 2026
ISBN: 9781464268076
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2026
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Toad and Little Blue Truck get ready for a hayride.
After the titular vehicle is loaded with hay, Toad is nowhere to be found. “Beep! Beep! Beep! Where are you, Toad?” asks Little Blue Truck. All the barnyard animals look for him. Sheep searches the meadow. Goose and Duck check the pond. Others pitch in, too, but Toad seems to have disappeared…until Hen hears snoring coming from the pile of hay in the back of Little Blue Truck. Although the text’s scansion is imperfect in places (adults may want to pre-read to ensure a smooth read-aloud), the bouncy meter and rhyming text nevertheless capture the energy of the search and the farmyard community’s concern for Toad’s safety, making this a solid storytime choice. Eye-catching illustrations with rich, fully saturated colors balance the right level of detail while still highlighting the animal that is the focus of each verse. By introducing one farm animal at a time, Schertle also helps the youngest readers begin to identify barnyard animals by name and understand their unique farm homes. Traditional animal sounds are part of the text, and listeners will add them to their vocabulary. It all ends with the promised hayride, bringing the tale to a joyous ending.
Fun times, fond friends, and a festive farmyard setting—little ones will be charmed. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Aug. 18, 2026
ISBN: 9780063436121
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
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