A well-illustrated tale that’s suitable for children whose parents seek to encourage their Muslim faith.
This book, intended to “establish an Islāmic foundation for the future generations,” is the fifth in a series about the roles of animals in the Quran, and focuses on the bird Hudhud.
The Prophet Sulayman rules over a large number of people, and has the ability to communicate with animals. One day, he discovers that his messenger bird, Hudhud, is missing. He asks the eagle Kurkus, leader of all birds, to search for him, to no avail. It’s revealed that Hudhud’s in the city of Saba, where the people, led by Queen Bilquis, worship the sun. The bird quickly travels back to Sulayman and tells him the news. The leader is distraught that Bilquis and her people aren’t worshipping Allah, so he sends her a letter, asking her to reconsider. The two rulers test each other, and eventually, Bilquis’ faith in Allah is solidified. Overall, Abidi (Prophet Musa & the Serpent, 2018, etc.) provides an appealing introduction to important events in the Quran. The story is paired with bright, colorful digital illustrations; Sulayman’s face, in particular, is illuminated to denote his holy nature. The end of the book provides questions that caregivers can use to help start conversations with their children about the story and its deeper meaning.
A well-illustrated tale that’s suitable for children whose parents seek to encourage their Muslim faith.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-1-68312-077-3
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Kisa Kids Publications
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A winsome blend of whimsical subjects and beguiling verse, sure to hook young minds.
The sorrows and consolations of childhood—strict moms, dull music lessons, enchanted beings, revolting cuisines—are plumbed in this collection of poetry.
Combs, a music teacher, has a nice feel for the way small things, horrid or gratifying or both, loom large in a kid’s life. There is the sad predicament, in “A Dreadful Day,” of being sick in bed: “I’m bored and tired / but Mom will say / ‘Inside all day—in bed you’ll stay / and drink the fruit juice on your tray.” There’s the “Piano Time” search for something to liven up the practice-hour ordeal: “But since I don’t know / what ‘willpower’ means / I’ll play with the frog / I hid in my jeans.” There is the tragedy of conceitedness limned in “I’m the Richest, Smartest, Prettiest Girl,” in which said paragon wonders why no one will play with her. But such travails are balanced by imaginative delights. One can commune with creatures both ordinary, such as the friendly ungulate in “Bruce the Moose,” and extraordinary, such as the lurid flying ungulate in “The Purple Gnu” or the tiny pranksters of “Shy Shuggles,” who tease spiders by spinning green webs. And there is the giggly joy in sheer grossness, explored by the identical twins in “Ollie? or Dollie?”: “So, Ollie ate slugs / Dollie ate bugs / Followed by slime juice in each other’s mugs.” Combs’s poems feature strong meters and rhyme schemes and a rich vocabulary, and are a good fit for four- to eight-year-olds; they can either be read aloud, with parents explaining unfamiliar words, or attempted alone by novice readers with the assistance of the author’s evocative drawings. (Included are a number of music-themed poems in which characters discover the thrill of playing the timpani or conducting the orchestra, learn new terms like “euphonium” and “fortissimo,” and get introduced to Mozart, Beethoven, Liszt and Sousa.)
A winsome blend of whimsical subjects and beguiling verse, sure to hook young minds.Pub Date: April 30, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-935631-03-3
Page Count: 154
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: July 20, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Two-digit subtraction is the subject of this MathStart picture book, which beats its one-note song slowly and relentlessly. Murphy builds this story, the latest in his series of math fundamentals, around a group of young shark swimmers who have a chance to attend swim camp if they can complete 75 laps among themselves over a week’s time. The coach has set up an easel by the pool, tallying their laps and then subtracting them from the running total on the easel. And that, quite simply, is how far Murphy takes the narrative, if such flimsy material can be called a story. There is nothing here to entice any child who is anxious, uninterested, or confused about math to get involved with either the subtraction or the story angle of the book. Murphy might just as well have presented a handful of subtraction problems on each page and forgotten all about the vapid story line, because the only kids who will find interest in these pages are those who really love mathematics, and there isn’t enough here for them to chew on to any satisfaction. (Picture book. 7-8)
Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2001
ISBN: 0-06-028030-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2000
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