A comforting characterization of eternity with luminescent, detailed images.
A child asks what will happen after his father dies and receives a transcendent, comforting answer in Finn’s picture book.
At bedtime, a youngster asks, “Daddy, will you live forever?” His father promises to take care of his health, so that he can be present, in person, with the child as long as possible. He acknowledges, though, that “there will be a day when it seems like I’m not around. / But all you have to do is look, and I’ll be found.” Comparing his future presence to a game of hide and seek, the father suggests that he’ll be anywhere the child is: as a star at night, or the sun during the day, or the path that leads the child onward. Artists Prajogo and Bastian beautifully depict the father and child in various picturesque locations, leaning toward outdoor nature scenes. The faces, especially the child’s, are round and sweet, with large, expressive eyes. Although the illustrations are generally realistic in style, they’re also full of whimsy, as when the child imagines hang gliding, evoking earlier images of a butterfly and cardinal. Finn’s rhyming couplets are strong, with stretch words (tethered, essential) that make this book a good one for youngsters and parents to experience together—echoing the book’s overarching message.
A comforting characterization of eternity with luminescent, detailed images.Pub Date: Oct. 7, 2025
ISBN: 9798891383470
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Mascot Kids
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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