CHOOSE YOUR DAYS

Name: CHOOSE YOUR DAYS
Author: Paula Wallace
ISBN: 978-1-941026-37-3

by Paula Wallace ; illustrated by Paula Wallace ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 12, 2016

This is the kind of book that will stick with readers, a meditation that they may not understand now but that, if digested,...

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With the help of Old Bear, Corky lives her life intentionally.

Old Bear is the “keeper of time and keys,” and when Corky is born, the big, pillowy-looking old ursine gives the little dark-haired, white child her days, two empty lists (one for dreams and one for things to do), her key, and a simple, whispered instruction: “Choose your days, make them sunny or gray.” She takes it seriously. Waking up beneath a clock with an urgent reminder instead of numbers—“Get up! You have stuff to do. Get up!”—Corky grows, moving from tricycle to two-wheeler, aging and becoming stooped over the course of two double-page spreads backgrounded with painterly strokes of aquamarine. Even aged, Corky still wants to pursue “work undone…play postponed…music unsung,” but eventually she must use her key to unlock the door to death, where Old Bear is waiting comfortingly. Wallace’s illustrations are metaphorical and cozy, her pointy-nosed protagonist perpetually clad in red shoes and scarf, striped stockings, and a comfy brown dress. Generous white space encompasses both protagonist and symbols of passing time (calendar pages, the stub of a pencil), giving children the emotional room to contemplate Corky’s progress.

This is the kind of book that will stick with readers, a meditation that they may not understand now but that, if digested, could have magical results . (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: March 12, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-941026-37-3

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Cinco Puntos Press

Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S RELIGIOUS FICTION

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WHEN I TALK TO GOD, I TALK ABOUT YOU

by Chrissy Metz & Bradley Collins ; illustrated by Lisa Fields ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 14, 2023

Stick to separate books about parental love and prayer instead.

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This Is Us actor Metz and her partner, songwriter Collins, present a rhyming children’s book about prayer and parental love.

“When I talk to God, guess what I do? / It’s really quite simple: I talk about you.” Fields’ pencil and digital illustrations show different parent-child animal pairs throughout, from bears to otters to skunks, ducks, deer, and more. But from this auspicious beginning, the authors’ point of view and direct address to “you,” the child, makes the majority of the pages seem like affirmations of what they love about their child and not what the parent actually prays for. Adults reading this aloud may see this as a prayer of thanksgiving for their child’s gifts and qualities, but little listeners will not make that connection. In the final pages, the parent tells the child that they can talk to God, too, and that God is always by their side. The last spread states, “You’re my sweetest prayer.” While the individual parts are sweet and affirming of a parent’s love and pride in their child, the sum of those parts isn’t what’s advertised in the title and repetitive refrain “When I talk to God, / I talk about you.” The gentle artwork in soft colors anthropomorphizes the animals’ facial expressions to make their loving relationships clear. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Stick to separate books about parental love and prayer instead. (Religious picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Feb. 14, 2023

ISBN: 978-0-593-52524-1

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Flamingo Books

Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S FAMILY | CHILDREN'S RELIGIOUS FICTION

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CHIK CHAK SHABBAT

by Mara Rockliff ; illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2014

A warm, cozy and loving depiction of shared culinary traditions around an inviting table.

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Neighbors join together to celebrate a holiday.

Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, brings a wonderful aroma to an urban apartment house. All the neighbors stop their activities and happily sniff the air as one door opens and everyone enters to feast on cholent. And what makes this dish so delicious? An Italian neighbor says tomatoes. Barley, says the Korean neighbor. Potatoes, says the family from India. No, it is beans, says the Spanish family. Goldie, a contemporary hostess, explains that cholent is a dish that her grandmother served on Shabbat, and that is what makes it taste special. Then, one Saturday, there is no wafting aroma, because Goldie is sick. Things go awry until the neighbors troop up the stairs with Indian potato curry, Korean barley tea, Italian pizza, and Spanish beans and rice. Goldie is happy because she can share a Shabbat meal. A recipe for vegetarian cholent is appended, but it’s too bad there is no note about the origins of the dish, a slow-cooked stew prepared before Shabbat when lighting a fire is not permitted. Also, “chik chak,” Hebrew for “quickly,” can be inferred but is not translated. Brooker’s oil paint and collage art presents a richly textured assortment of folk and apartments.

A warm, cozy and loving depiction of shared culinary traditions around an inviting table. (Picture book. 3-6)