An extraordinary expression of Filipino culture and intergenerational familial bonds.
A child describes the smells, tastes, and feelings of their summer.
“How do I know summer is here?” For the child sharing their story, summer is the smell of stone fruit ripening and days with nothing to do. Summer really begins when their lola comes to visit and makes her special mango jam. Together, grandmother and grandchild play at the pool, go to the beach, and watch fireworks. Lola fills their days with the delicious smells and tastes of traditional Filipino food, like cassava cake and sisig. Summer blooms with happy memories of gathering fruit, fishing, cooking, and eating together. When Lola returns home, summer turns to chilly breezes and falling leaves, but Lola has one more surprise. This is a beautiful, tender expression of family and love that spans generations and great distances. Each moment is described as a smell or taste, which engages all of readers’ senses. The illustrations add so much life and context to the words, especially for the Filipino dishes. The bright colors and visible brush strokes add warmth and capture the feelings of summer. The family is Filipino, and all have brown skin, black hair, and black eyes. Lola speaks Tagalog and Ilocano.
An extraordinary expression of Filipino culture and intergenerational familial bonds. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-297285-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Brotherly love and Black joy abound in this brilliantly told tribute to the ties that bind.
When Mom and Dad bring baby Rasheed home for the first time, it’s love at first sight for big brother Anthony.
As the boys grow, Anthony teaches his little sibling how to build a tower with blocks (and how to knock it down with a loud “WHOP!!!”), how to ride a bike, and even how to fly (through a well-timed leap from the swings). When thunder and lightning wake them both one night, Anthony assuages Rasheed’s fears with the book’s titular refrain: “I got you.” But one day Anthony goes for a bike ride with his friends, leaving Rasheed alone and hurt. That night, Anthony explains that while he may spend time with his peers, his bond with Rasheed is unbreakable. And as the book comes to a close, with Mom and Dad introducing the boys to their new little sibling, Anthony leaves Rasheed with perhaps the greatest lesson of all: how to be a supportive big brother himself. Narrated by Rasheed, Barnes’ text is elegant in its simplicity, loving yet never saccharine, and always emotionally honest. Using varied perspectives, Knight-Justice’s richly hued, collagelike digital illustrations combine a patchwork of textures and patterns, immersing readers in this affectionate Black family’s world. Greens and blues dominate the pages, bringing to life an idyllic suburban setting.
Brotherly love and Black joy abound in this brilliantly told tribute to the ties that bind. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 15, 2025
ISBN: 9780593111451
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on...
Continuing from their acclaimed Those Shoes (2007), Boelts and Jones entwine conversations on money, motives, and morality.
This second collaboration between author and illustrator is set within an urban multicultural streetscape, where brown-skinned protagonist Ruben wishes for a bike like his friend Sergio’s. He wishes, but Ruben knows too well the pressure his family feels to prioritize the essentials. While Sergio buys a pack of football cards from Sonny’s Grocery, Ruben must buy the bread his mom wants. A familiar lady drops what Ruben believes to be a $1 bill, but picking it up, to his shock, he discovers $100! Is this Ruben’s chance to get himself the bike of his dreams? In a fateful twist, Ruben loses track of the C-note and is sent into a panic. After finally finding it nestled deep in a backpack pocket, he comes to a sense of moral clarity: “I remember how it was for me when that money that was hers—then mine—was gone.” When he returns the bill to her, the lady offers Ruben her blessing, leaving him with double-dipped emotions, “happy and mixed up, full and empty.” Readers will be pleased that there’s no reward for Ruben’s choice of integrity beyond the priceless love and warmth of a family’s care and pride.
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on children. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6649-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
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