by Nancy Viau ; illustrated by Jorge Lacera ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 22, 2022
Lightweight entertainment.
Pruett’s regimented, lackluster life is completely transformed when he befriends a vivacious foreigner named Soo.
Pruett, a young monitor head robot, lives on the tiny Planet Monochrome. Like the rest of his fellow automatons, Pruett strives to never stand out, never ask or answer questions, and “never use anything but a black, gray, or white crayon” at school. One day, a new student named Soo arrives, hailing from Planet Prismatic. Soo—a multicolored extraterrestrial who literally glows—is a cheerful maverick who tries to get Pruett to live a little. He resists her attempts at first, but when Soo’s color starts to fade and her glow begins to dim, a remorseful Pruett finds the courage to break out of his society’s mold, igniting a colorful revolution that changes Planet Monochrome forever. The unlikely friendship at the heart of this allegorical picture book is touching. Viau’s writing is engaging; however, the storyline is predictable from beginning to end. Moreover, the story’s depiction of the demise of conformity and its conceptualization of how social change is achieved are frustratingly oversimplistic. Lacera’s digital illustrations are retro-futuristic with nods to video game and comic book aesthetics. Mirroring the story arc, the palette of the artwork gradually shifts from grayscale to brilliantly polychromatic.
Lightweight entertainment. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 22, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-4342-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Two Lions
Review Posted Online: Dec. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2022
Share your opinion of this book
More by Nancy Viau
BOOK REVIEW
by Nancy Viau ; illustrated by Charlie Alder
BOOK REVIEW
by Nancy Viau ; illustrated by Talitha Shipman
BOOK REVIEW
by Nancy Viau ; illustrated by Anna Vojtech
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
Share your opinion of this book
More by Hoda Kotb
BOOK REVIEW
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Suzie Mason
by Phil Rosenthal & Lily Rosenthal ; illustrated by Luke Flowers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts.
With one taste of despised mustard, a child pivots from rejecting new foods to seeking them.
Dad takes Lil to a food truck festival. Lil, who narrates the story, is nervous; this child’s list of acceptable foods is short (pizza, rice, grilled cheese, french fries, and vanilla ice cream). Dad loves varied tastes and repeatedly reminds Lil of his rule: “Just try it!” With a “YECCCH!” or an “EWWWWWW!” Lil refuses a bagel loaded with toppings, linguini with clams, Peking duck, pizza with spinach and garlic, and a pretzel covered with Lil’s most hated of foods: mustard. Frustrated, Lil accidentally knocks the pretzel onto Dad’s shirt. Lil apologizes, takes a lick of mustard…and instantly learns to appreciate every rejected offering. Lil then uses the title mantra to pressure Dad onto a nausea-inducing roller-coaster ride. Bright, cartoon-style illustrations emphasize the pair's upbeat mood. Food neophobia, or an aversion to eating anything novel, has complex psychosocial roots. But in this blithe little fable, the child’s resistance is completely overcome with a single accidental exposure, and the formerly picky eater immediately becomes a novelty seeker. The turnaround here is implausible; if this book creates any expectations of a sudden dramatic change in a child’s behavior, that would be a disservice. Both Dad and Lil are light-skinned.
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781665942638
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
Share your opinion of this book
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
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.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.