As in the sea, there’s something in this volume’s abundance for most everyone, and it will amply reward repeat visitors, who...
Waves, tides, sands, oh my!
More than 50 poems, some rhyming and some providing punchy tidbits of information, make up this exuberant collection, which is divided into four themed sections: “Down by the Shore,” “Journeys,” “Under the Sea,” and “Wonders.” Each section includes a group of (mostly) short verses that illuminate the delightful experience of being in, under, or near the ocean. The poems shimmer with vivid imagery and sparkling language as they extol carefree activities such as swimming, beachcombing, surfing, building a sand castle, observing sundry aquatic creatures in and out of the water, sailing, and discovering the fun to be had on a pier. Additionally, there are poems about exploring, deriving sustenance and livelihood from the sea, and identifying ships and nautical knots. They’re lovely as both read-alouds and pieces to memorize. The lively watercolors drive the poems, and many, together with accompanying poems, expand across two-page spreads. The charming artwork is awash in blue and other magical sea colors and teems with realistic details, movement, and life; note a jaw-dropping gatefold of a humpback whale with instructions on singing a humpback’s “song.” Sea life is depicted in an amazing variety of forms; humans are shown as diverse in skin tone, hair color, size, and age.
As in the sea, there’s something in this volume’s abundance for most everyone, and it will amply reward repeat visitors, who will benefit from its largesse. (Poetry. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 25, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9882-9
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 29, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
Appealingly designed and illustrated, an engaging, fun story about the inspiration and inventor of that essential staple of...
The Band-Aid is one of those remarkably useful things that just about everyone has used, but has anyone wondered who invented them and how they become a staple in medicine cabinets all over?
In an engaging, humorous narrative, Wittenstein reveals the true story behind the invention. In the 1920s, Earle Dickson worked as a cotton buyer for Johnson & Johnson. His wife, Josephine, was an accident-prone klutz who frequently injured herself in the kitchen, slicing, grating, and burning herself. The son of a doctor, Earle worked on finding easier ways to bandage Josephine’s injuries than wrapping them in rags. He took adhesive tape, then applied sterile gauze and crinoline, and the first Band-Aid was born. Impressed with Earle’s prototype, his boss agreed to produce and sell the bandage, but it took a while to catch on. Once Band-Aids were mass-produced, the company gave them away to Boy Scouts and soldiers serving in World War II, and then they caught on with the American public and the rest of world. Wittenstein notes that some of the dialogue and interactions between Earle and Josephine are imagined. Hsu’s illustrations, done in mixed media and Photoshop, have a whimsical, retro look that nicely complements the lighthearted tone of the text. Earle and Josephine are white, but people of color appear in backgrounds.
Appealingly designed and illustrated, an engaging, fun story about the inspiration and inventor of that essential staple of home first aid. (timeline, websites) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 13, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-58089-745-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Supported by helpful backmatter including a simple map, this will interest animal-fact lovers and primary classroom teachers...
Animal babies from around the world describe their families.
This information-packed title not only describes varied family structures and child-rearing practices, it gives the proper names of the children for each of 23 species and, for nine, the word for “mother” or “father” rendered in the language appropriate to the animal’s home. Appealing digital paintings show animals, usually a parent and offspring, in their usual habitat. Set directly on the image in thin but readable type is the animal child’s statement: “I’m in charge of all my meals” (white rhino calf); “My dad gives piggybacks” (poison dart frog tadpole); “I’m a super sister” (meerkat pup). The examples come from around the world; the parental behaviors represent the wide variety seen among humans. Often a spread will show contrasts: beavers live in one place, orangutans “move around a bunch”; sharks look just like their parents, ladybugs are markedly different as larvae and pupae. For same-sex or adoptive families, the author offers one-of-a-kind or unusual examples: the male chinstrap penguin pair from a New York zoo; a dog named Guddi who adopted a monkey; female albatross parenting pairs in Hawaii. She concludes with a spread of diverse human families of varying and sometimes contrasting colors, ethnicities, and composition.
Supported by helpful backmatter including a simple map, this will interest animal-fact lovers and primary classroom teachers alike. (glossary, map and key, author’s note, further reading) (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5124-2532-1
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2018
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