by Olivia Jaimes ; illustrated by Olivia Jaimes ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2019
Simple, sweet, and entertaining.
Aunt Fritzi has made cornbread, and Nancy has a genius plan to have it all for herself—or perhaps not?
Classic cartoon character Nancy has been given new life under Jaimes (a pseudonym for the cartoonist), but keeping true to her original characterization, Nancy remains immature and impulsive. In this story—told in full-bleed, single-page format rather than the traditional paneled comic-strip format—Aunt Fritzi has “made cornbread for everybody to share.” Nancy has other plans. She wants it all for herself and enlists readers’ help to carry out her “genius plan.” First, they must knock on the window to distract Aunt Fritzi; turn the page slowly so as not to wake up the dog; and finally turn the book upside down so Nancy can sneak past her friends. Mission accomplished. The cornbread, all “delicious” and “crumbly,” is hers. Yet it feels lonely, so readers are now asked to “shake this book up and down a couple of times.” When everyone comes “to see what all the ruckus is” about, they can all sit down to enjoy the cornbread together. The book ends in true Nancy style with the punchline “Just like I planned all along.” Nancy, Aunt Fritzi, and Sluggo are white, and her other three friends are kids of color.
Simple, sweet, and entertaining. (Board book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5248-5180-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2019
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by Olivia Jaimes ; illustrated by Olivia Jaimes
by Rachel Isadora ; illustrated by Rachel Isadora ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 14, 2017
If Black Lives Matter, they deserve more specificity than this.
A lushly illustrated picture book with a troubling message.
Little Lala walks with her father after his successful day of fishing. When Mama calls her home for bed, a host of “good night”s delays her: to the bird, the monkey, and even the rock. As Lala wanders through her village in the darkening twilight, readers appreciate its expansive beauty and Lala’s simple joys. Although it’s been artfully written and richly illustrated by an award-winning author of many multicultural stories, this book has problems that overshadow its beauty. “African veld” sets the story in southern Africa, but its vague locale encourages Americans to think that distinctions among African countries don’t matter. Lala wears braids or locks that stick straight up, recalling the 19th-century pickaninny, and her inconsistent skin color ranges from deep ebony like her father’s to light brown. Shadows may cause some of these differences, but if it weren’t for her identifiable hair, readers might wonder if the same child wanders from page to page. Perhaps most striking of all is Lala’s bedtime story: not an African tale but an American classic. While this might evoke nostalgia in some readers, it also suggests that southern Africa has no comparably great bedtime books for Lala, perhaps in part because American children’s literature dominates the world market.
If Black Lives Matter, they deserve more specificity than this. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-17384-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
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by Rachel Isadora ; illustrated by Rachel Isadora
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by Rachel Isadora ; illustrated by Rachel Isadora
BOOK REVIEW
by Rachel Isadora ; illustrated by Rachel Isadora
by Jimmy Fallon ; illustrated by Miguel Ordóñez ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2015
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it.
A succession of animal dads do their best to teach their young to say “Dada” in this picture-book vehicle for Fallon.
A grumpy bull says, “DADA!”; his calf moos back. A sad-looking ram insists, “DADA!”; his lamb baas back. A duck, a bee, a dog, a rabbit, a cat, a mouse, a donkey, a pig, a frog, a rooster, and a horse all fail similarly, spread by spread. A final two-spread sequence finds all of the animals arrayed across the pages, dads on the verso and children on the recto. All the text prior to this point has been either iterations of “Dada” or animal sounds in dialogue bubbles; here, narrative text states, “Now everybody get in line, let’s say it together one more time….” Upon the turn of the page, the animal dads gaze round-eyed as their young across the gutter all cry, “DADA!” (except the duckling, who says, “quack”). Ordóñez's illustrations have a bland, digital look, compositions hardly varying with the characters, although the pastel-colored backgrounds change. The punch line fails from a design standpoint, as the sudden, single-bubble chorus of “DADA” appears to be emanating from background features rather than the baby animals’ mouths (only some of which, on close inspection, appear to be open). It also fails to be funny.
Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: June 9, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-250-00934-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: April 14, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2015
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by Jimmy Fallon & Jennifer Lopez ; illustrated by Andrea Campos
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