by Peter H. Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 26, 2019
This book’s encouragement to kids to find their voices can also be used to start a conversation about how they can make a...
In this new effort, Reynolds shows readers a variety of ways a voice can be used, listened to, and heard to make a difference.
Each spread shows an example of how someone can change something or a situation “with words, with action, with creativity.” The book opens on a young black girl who’s exhorted by an unseen narrator via speech bubble: “The world needs your voice.” Through many scenarios (“If you see someone lonely…”; “If you see an empty canvas…”), the narrator encourages children to take action in many ways. A young child can speak up “with a poem” or “by planting a seed and watching it bloom.” These scenarios are enacted by a diverse group of kids, including many with various skin tones and hair textures, a child in a wheelchair, and one with glasses; ethnically or religiously specific accouterments are absent, however. Details such as the legends on T-shirts or protest signs (“Make more light”; “Shalom”; “I have a dream”; “I persist”) reinforce the message. Reynolds’ hand-lettered text, set in white text bubbles against a mix of bright backdrop colors and patterns, deftly works with before-and-after illustrations to show the change that children can effect.
This book’s encouragement to kids to find their voices can also be used to start a conversation about how they can make a difference in their world. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-545-86503-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Nov. 11, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2018
Share your opinion of this book
More by Marc Colagiovanni
BOOK REVIEW
by Marc Colagiovanni ; illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
BOOK REVIEW
by Peter H. Reynolds & Henry Rocket Reynolds ; illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
BOOK REVIEW
by Susan Verde ; illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
Share your opinion of this book
More by Hoda Kotb
BOOK REVIEW
by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Suzie Mason
by Phil Rosenthal & Lily Rosenthal ; illustrated by Luke Flowers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts.
With one taste of despised mustard, a child pivots from rejecting new foods to seeking them.
Dad takes Lil to a food truck festival. Lil, who narrates the story, is nervous; this child’s list of acceptable foods is short (pizza, rice, grilled cheese, french fries, and vanilla ice cream). Dad loves varied tastes and repeatedly reminds Lil of his rule: “Just try it!” With a “YECCCH!” or an “EWWWWWW!” Lil refuses a bagel loaded with toppings, linguini with clams, Peking duck, pizza with spinach and garlic, and a pretzel covered with Lil’s most hated of foods: mustard. Frustrated, Lil accidentally knocks the pretzel onto Dad’s shirt. Lil apologizes, takes a lick of mustard…and instantly learns to appreciate every rejected offering. Lil then uses the title mantra to pressure Dad onto a nausea-inducing roller-coaster ride. Bright, cartoon-style illustrations emphasize the pair's upbeat mood. Food neophobia, or an aversion to eating anything novel, has complex psychosocial roots. But in this blithe little fable, the child’s resistance is completely overcome with a single accidental exposure, and the formerly picky eater immediately becomes a novelty seeker. The turnaround here is implausible; if this book creates any expectations of a sudden dramatic change in a child’s behavior, that would be a disservice. Both Dad and Lil are light-skinned.
Amusing but misleading on the nutritional and behavioral fronts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781665942638
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 18, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2023
Share your opinion of this book
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.