by Patricia Martin & illustrated by Marc Boutavant ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 8, 2008
Life is positively vexing for Lulu Atlantis at this particular moment in time. It isn’t enough that her father is constantly away saving various animal species from extinction, but now her mother has gone and had an unnecessary (to Lulu’s eyes) baby. With her best friend Harry at her side (a top-hatted spider who may just exist in Lulu’s imagination), Lulu decides to search for the True Blue Love she is certain she currently lacks. In the course of four stories she also makes the acquaintance of a tough-talking skunk, gangster bakers, a spoiled kitty and an Egg Man. A near tragedy at the end also teaches Lulu that love of this particular shade is sometimes closer to home than we realize. The “True Blue Love” conceit become tiresome, but Martin’s clever enough to pepper her twee sensibilities with honestly imaginative writing. There’s enough good old-fashioned curiosity and, quite frankly, weirdness in this early chapter book to overcome its potentially cutesy underpinnings. With descriptive sentences and a penchant for eclectic storytelling, this is an author to watch. (Fiction. 6-9)
Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-375-84016-6
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2007
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by Patricia Martin ; illustrated by Rocio Bonilla
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by Lulu Delacre ; illustrated by Lulu Delacre ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 17, 2019
A welcome, well-researched reflection of cultural pride in the early-reader landscape.
The fourth installment in Delacre’s early-reader series centers on the rich musical traditions of Puerto Rico, once again featuring sibling tree frogs Rafi and Rosi Coquí.
Readers learn along with Rafi and Rosi as they explore bomba, plena, and salsa in three chapters. A glossary at the beginning sets readers up well to understand the Spanish vocabulary, including accurate phoneticization for non-Spanish speakers. The stories focus on Rafi and Rosi’s relationship within a musical context. For example, in one chapter Rafi finds out that he attracts a larger audience playing his homemade güiro with Rosi’s help even though he initially excluded her: “Big brothers only.” Even when he makes mistakes, as the older brother, Rafi consoles Rosi when she is embarrassed or angry at him. In each instance, their shared joy for music and dance ultimately shines through any upsets—a valuable reflection of unity. Informational backmatter and author’s sources are extensive. Undoubtedly these will help teachers, librarians, and parents to develop Puerto Rican cultural programs, curriculum, or home activities to extend young readers’ learning. The inclusion of instructions to make one’s own homemade güiro is a thoughtful addition. The Spanish translation, also by Delacre and published simultaneously, will require a more advanced reader than the English one to recognize and comprehend contractions (“pa’bajo-pa-pa’rriba”) and relatively sophisticated vocabulary.
A welcome, well-researched reflection of cultural pride in the early-reader landscape. (Early reader. 7-9)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-89239-429-6
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Children's Book Press
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
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by Lulu Delacre ; illustrated by Lulu Delacre
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by Lulu Delacre ; illustrated by Lulu Delacre
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by Lulu Delacre ; illustrated by Lulu Delacre
by Deborah Zemke ; illustrated by Deborah Zemke ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 14, 2019
A funny and timely primer for budding activists.
Problems are afoot at Emily Dickinson Elementary School, and it’s up to Bea Garcia to gather the troops and fight.
Bea Garcia and her best friend, Judith Einstein, sit every day under the 250-year-old oak tree in their schoolyard and imagine a face in its trunk. They name it “Emily” after their favorite American poet. Bea loves to draw both real and imagined pictures of their favorite place—the squirrels in the tree, the branches that reach for the sky, the view from the canopy even though she’s never climbed that high. Until the day a problem boy does climb that high, pelting the kids with acorns and then getting stuck. Bert causes such a scene that the school board declares Emily a nuisance and decides to chop it down. Bea and Einstein rally their friends with environmental facts, poetry, and artwork to try to convince the adults in their lives to change their minds. Bea must enlist Bert if she wants her plan to succeed. Can she use her imagination and Bert’s love of monsters to get him in line? In Bea’s fourth outing, Zemke gently encourages her protagonist to grow from an artist into an activist. Her energy and passion spill from both her narration and her frequent cartoons, which humorously extend the text. Spanish-speaking Bea’s Latinx, Einstein and Bert present white, and their classmates are diverse.
A funny and timely primer for budding activists. (Graphic/fiction hybrid. 6-9)Pub Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-7352-2941-9
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
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by Robin Newman ; illustrated by Deborah Zemke
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by Ian Lendler ; illustrated by Deborah Zemke
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by Deborah Zemke ; illustrated by Deborah Zemke
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