In this picture-book debut, Serefina is seven years old and comes, her grandmother says, “from a long line of people who are full of imagination.” Serefina envisions all her ancestors dangling from a clothesline as her grandmother reminds her that an imagination is a “blessing, as long as you don’t let it run away with you.” When the grandmother bestows a secret upon Serefina—that her brother, Buster, is to have a surprise birthday party—it takes root, sprouts, and quickly grows so large that the child has difficulty not blurting it out. After she does just that, Serefina’s story to her grandmother about why telling the secret became a life-and-death whopper (the “circumstances” of the title), the older woman is no less loving, apparently resigned to the fact that a child who is “destined for greatness” may need a little poetic license along the way. Priceman’s humorous scenes embellish and extend the wordplay in the text, offering literal visual translations of words and the exaggerated effects of Serefina’s imagination on daily events. Storytelling and the power of words, however, while present as themes, never overwhelm the delicately wrapped core of this piece: the tolerance and unconditional affection between the two main characters. (Picture book. 7-10)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-688-15942-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1999
There is something profoundly elemental going on in Smalls’s book: the capturing of a moment of unmediated joy. It’s not melodramatic, but just a Saturday in which an African-American father and son immerse themselves in each other’s company when the woman of the house is away. Putting first things first, they tidy up the house, with an unheralded sense of purpose motivating their actions: “Then we clean, clean, clean the windows,/wipe, wipe, wash them right./My dad shines in the windows’ light.” When their work is done, they head for the park for some batting practice, then to the movies where the boy gets to choose between films. After a snack, they work their way homeward, racing each other, doing a dance step or two, then “Dad takes my hand and slows down./I understand, and we slow down./It’s a long, long walk./We have a quiet talk and smile.” Smalls treats the material without pretense, leaving it guileless and thus accessible to readers. Hays’s artwork is wistful and idyllic, just as this day is for one small boy. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-316-79899-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1999
One of a four-book series designed to help the very young prepare for new siblings, this title presents a toddler-and-mother pair (the latter heavily pregnant) as they read about new babies, sort hand-me-downs, buy new toys, visit the obstetrician and the sonographer, speculate and wait. Throughout, the child asks questions and makes exclamations with complete enthusiasm: “How big is the baby? What does it eat? I felt it move! Is it a boy or girl?” Fuller’s jolly pictures present a biracial family that thoroughly enjoys every moment together. It’s a bit oversimplified, but no one can complain about the positive message it conveys, appropriately, to its baby and toddler audience. The other titles in the New Baby series are My New Baby (ISBN: 978-1-84643-276-7), Look at Me! (ISBN: 978-1-84643-278-1) and You and Me (ISBN: 978-1-84643-277-4). (Board book. 18 mos.-3)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-84643-275-0
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Child's Play
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2010
BOOK REVIEW
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