Readers who experience anxiety will undoubtedly identify with—and hopefully find comfort in—Ari’s story.
A young monster learns to be brave as she struggles with anxiety.
Harriet “Ari” Hairstein wants to be a monsterologist when she grows up, but when she has to give a presentation in monsterology class, she panics. Even though she’ll be talking about her favorite animal, the manglemane lion, when she thinks about speaking in public, she can’t breathe, her stomach hurts, and her heart pounds. Ari is plagued by catastrophic thinking and nightmares until her friends Marvin and Timmy, each of whom tackled their own troubles in previous Monster Diaries (ADHD and screen addiction, respectively), offer to help her with ST4 strategies, or STOP: Take Time To Think. The book emulates a Diary of a Wimpy Kid design, with lined pages, faux hand-printed typeface, and kidlike line drawings. Helpful backmatter includes a parents’ guide with activities for alleviating stress and anxiety in children and instructions on how to use co-author Melmed’s ST4 program. A wide array of monster types populates Ari’s world. There are clues that Ari’s loving family is Jewish: Bobbe (her grandmother) is similar to the Yiddish Bubbe, and Harriet’s nickname, “Ari,” means lion in Hebrew; immigrant Bobbe is possibly Polish (she makes a lot of borscht, or in their case, roarscht, and pierogis).
Readers who experience anxiety will undoubtedly identify with—and hopefully find comfort in—Ari’s story. (Fantasy. 7-11)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-64170-127-3
Page Count: 116
Publisher: Familius
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
A charming contemporary story with a classic feel.
A 10 ¾-year-old girl weathers changes in her social circle—and her sense of self.
Dubbed “Queen of the Neighborhood” by beloved neighbor Mr. Chapman, who has sadly left Maryland for balmy Florida, Zara is apprehensive when a family with two kids moves into his house, potentially upsetting the delicate social balance. Readers familiar with Khan’s Zayd Saleem, Chasing the Dream books, set a few years after this series opener, will recognize the bustling Pakistani American Muslim household. Assertive, organized Zara and rambunctious 7-year-old Zayd live with their Mama and Baba; the siblings’ grandparents and uncle are integral parts of their daily lives. Zara and Zayd enjoy playing outside with their friends—Black sisters Jade and Gloria, White Alan, and Chinese American Melvin. Mr. Chapman always said that Zara knew how to “rule with grace and fairness,” but new arrivals Naomi and Michael, Jewish kids who are eager to engage socially, put this to the test. When Jamal Mamoo, Mama’s brother, brings over his Guinness World Records book, Zara decides that becoming a world-record holder is the boost her social status needs. Her humorous (and futile) attempts to make her mark ultimately lead her to being a more patient and understanding big sister and more flexible and supportive companion to friends old and new. Strong pacing, fluid prose, engaging hijinks, and heartwarming scenes of family life and outdoor play are complemented by expressive illustrations.
A charming contemporary story with a classic feel. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: April 19, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5344-9759-7
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: July 12, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
Deliberately inspirational and tinged with nostalgia, this will please fans but may strike others as overly idealistic.
Veteran picture-book creator Polacco tells another story from her childhood that celebrates the importance of staying true to one’s own interests and values.
After years of spending summers with her father and grandmother, narrator Trisha is excited to be spending the school year in Michigan with them. Unexpectedly abandoned by her summertime friends, Trisha quickly connects with fellow outsiders Thom and Ravanne, who may be familiar to readers from Polacco’s The Junkyard Wonders (2010). Throughout the school year, the three enjoy activities together and do their best to avoid school bully Billy. While a physical confrontation between Thom (aka “Sissy Boy”) and Billy does come, so does an opportunity for Thom to defy convention and share his talent with the community. Loosely sketched watercolor illustrations place the story in the middle of the last century, with somewhat old-fashioned clothing and an apparently all-White community. Trisha and her classmates appear to be what today would be called middle schoolers; a reference to something Trisha and her mom did when she was “only eight” suggests that several years have passed since that time. As usual, the lengthy first-person narrative is cozily conversational but includes some challenging vocabulary (textiles, lackeys, foretold). The author’s note provides a brief update about her friends’ careers and encourages readers to embrace their own differences. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Deliberately inspirational and tinged with nostalgia, this will please fans but may strike others as overly idealistic. (Picture book. 7-10)Pub Date: Oct. 6, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5344-2622-1
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
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