An emotionally honest and lovingly rendered take on the highs and lows of friendship.
The protagonist of Summer Is for Cousins! (2023) encounters further ups and downs as school starts.
Ravi loves autumn and the fresh beginning it represents. This year, the students will be making paper trees; every time they do something new, they’ll adorn their tree with a leaf. Ravi’s classroom is in an unfamiliar part of the school, and the young protagonist tries out new instruments in music class—all reasons to add leaves. When new girl Ellie offers Ravi and BFF Joe a bite of her beet salad at lunch, it’s another opportunity for a leaf, but Ravi’s not so sure. The well-meaning but overbearing Ellie comes on strong (“I told you we’d be best friends!”), and Ravi’s resistant. It all comes to a head on costume day. Ellie shows up dressed as sprinkles—to complement Ravi’s and Joe’s ice cream and cone getups—and Ravi explodes in anger. But Ravi’s big sister Anita, who knows what it’s like to deal with an initially unwelcome interloper, offers some wise words, and Ravi eventually mends fences with Ellie. LaRocca’s story is well paced and realistic, eschewing drawn-out conversations for actions that speak far louder; this happy ending is well earned. Alwar’s scribbly illustrations brim with chaotic, humorous details that add a perfectly calibrated lightness to the earnest text. Ravi is of South Asian descent, Joe is pale-skinned, and Ellie is brown-skinned.
An emotionally honest and lovingly rendered take on the highs and lows of friendship. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2025
ISBN: 9781419777400
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2025
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle...
Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine’s experience as she struggles to realize her vision.
First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: “[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn’t turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she “tinkers,” “wrenches,” “fiddles,” “examines,” “stares” and “tweaks.” Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner’s through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant.
Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-55453-704-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Kids Can
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014
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