A tender tale featuring a loving two-mom family that will resonate with any child who has ever missed a loved one.
A child misses their Mommy when she goes away for a few days.
On Monday, when “the sun is still hiding and the moon is still bright,” Mommy, a Black woman, wakes her young daughter with a kiss on the cheek. Like “always,” Mama, a White woman with purple hair, gets the plates, the child gets the silverware, and Mommy cooks pancakes. But, unlike most days, Mommy leaves for a work trip to a “faraway place,” to return on Sunday. After her departure, many things throw off the child’s routine and elicit big feelings. At the sidewalk cafe, there are two cups instead of the usual three. At the store, the child picks up “blueberries for Mommy” before remembering she isn’t home. The girl grows more and more despondent, eventually succumbing to tears; but after a snuggle from Mama, things begin to look up when the child gets an idea for how to welcome Mommy home. YA author LaCour’s picture-book debut, narrated from the child’s first-person perspective, is filled to the brim with love. Juanita’s mixed-media illustrations—a combination of spot art and full-bleed spreads—vividly capture the coziness of the family’s life and the range of emotions the child experiences. Visual motifs throughout—such as three raccoons crossing the street and three chairs at the cafe—subtly remind readers of Mommy’s absence. Mama has tattoos, and Mommy and the girl both have natural hair and skin patches that suggest vitiligo. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A tender tale featuring a loving two-mom family that will resonate with any child who has ever missed a loved one. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1151-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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