A fabulous family story with something for the young and old alike. (Picture book. 4-8)
Readers will tune up their observation skills while spending time with a grandfather and granddaughter who keep life interesting.
Sophie, a light-brown–skinned little girl who lives with Mama, Daddy, and Grandpa, has a special relationship with her grandfather. Every day of the week, when Sophie arrives home from school, saying, “Here I am, Grandpa,” he pretends to have lost something that he needs Sophie’s help to find. There’s a paperclip, a favorite paintbrush, a rubber band, and more—all of which are hidden “in plain sight.” Jackson and Pinkney’s quiet snapshot of one week in the life of a close-knit African-American family shows how significant intergenerational relationships can be for both children and seniors. Grandpa, who uses a wheelchair, looks forward to his daily time with Sophie as much as she awaits hers with him. Pinkney’s exquisitely detailed watercolor paintings are a feast for the eye, and the challenge of finding some of the hidden objects will also make readers observe closely. A tabby cat, who seems to have as much personality as the humans, appears on every page and will remind readers familiar with Pinkney’s work of the animals in other picture books he has illustrated such as Sam and the Tigers and The Lion and the Mouse, although this feline has no anthropomorphic characteristics.
A fabulous family story with something for the young and old alike. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-62672-255-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Neal Porter/Roaring Brook
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
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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BOOK REVIEW
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