A solid, humorous exploration into the skin—and why color biases are just silly.
Jablonski and McGee present a science-centered, kid-friendly counter to racism, starring Epi Dermis, a shape-changing, cartoon representation of skin.
Dermis is happy to set the record straight for young readers: Skin is everywhere on the body, tit says, and is incredibly useful. Skin offers sensations that give information and tells the body whether to cover up from the cold or sweat to relieve heat. The body is mostly water, and skin keeps it inside. Dermis also points out truths about skin color, as well: “Color doesn’t make a person nice, mean, fast, strong, smart, or scary,” the narrator says, but no one will listen to a patch of skin. “If I tell you all about me,” Dermis asks the reader, “will you help me tell everyone else?” It then explains scientific facts about skin, and how its color protects the body from different levels of ultraviolet light and shows where a person’s ancestors came from. Illustrator Vermeulen makes Dermis a compelling narrative guide; it changes shape and perpetually alters its hues. The images depict humans as cartoony with big, circular eyes—and, of course, many different skin tones. Jablonski and McGee use Dermis’ accessible voice to present the scientific basics with approachable vocabulary, even when talking about big ideas, such as like human evolution. Call-out boxes make important facts easier to grasp, and a long section at the end provides similar information at a slightly higher level—in the voice of a scientist, rather than a cartoon character. Caregivers, teachers, and older independent readers are sure to use this part of the book to enhance what they’ve already learned.
A solid, humorous exploration into the skin—and why color biases are just silly.Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781733547413
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Powers Squared
Review Posted Online: Sept. 26, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A kind child in a book for middle-grade readers? There’s no downside to that.
Beatrice Zinker is a kinder, gentler Judy Moody.
Beatrice doesn’t want to be fit in a box. Her first word was “WOW,” not “Mom.” She does her best thinking upside down and prefers to dress like a ninja. Like Judy Moody, she has patient parents and a somewhat annoying younger brother. (She also has a perfectly ordinary older sister.) Beatrice spends all summer planning a top-secret spy operation complete with secret codes and a secret language (pig Latin). But on the first day of third grade, her best friend, Lenny (short for Eleanor), shows up in a dress, with a new friend who wants to play veterinarian at recess. Beatrice, essentially a kind if somewhat quirky kid, struggles to see the upside of the situation and ends up with two friends instead of one. Line drawings on almost every spread add to the humor and make the book accessible to readers who might otherwise balk at its 160 pages. Thankfully, the rhymes in the text do not continue past the first chapter. Children will enjoy the frequent puns and Beatrice’s preference for climbing trees and hanging upside down. The story drifts dangerously close to pedantry when Beatrice asks for advice from a grandmotherly neighbor but is saved by likable characters and upside-down cake. Beatrice seems to be white; Lenny’s surname, Santos, suggests that she may be Latina; their school is a diverse one.
A kind child in a book for middle-grade readers? There’s no downside to that. (Fiction. 6-10)Pub Date: Sept. 19, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4847-6738-2
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: July 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2017
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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