Yusi, a contemporary Native American (no particular community is specified) boy living in a village in the Southwest, loves to write his name on everything: his school desk, trees, rocks, and canyon walls. The other people of Yusi’s village don’t like his markings, or tag, telling him that it is making their surroundings ugly. They mock his name, pronounced “You-see,” by calling him “Yodonsi” (“You-don’t-see”). Yusi is determined to be noticed, climbing to the top of the canyon wall to spray paint his name; he is caught in a landslide and terrible storm. He finds shelter in a cave, where his people also find safety, and Yusi realizes the importance of honoring the land. Blake (Akiak, 1997, etc.) offers dramatic paintings of the landscape, with sweeping double-page scenes that capture the majesty of the towering cliffs in rain and sunshine. The message is a heavy one, but Blake’s reverence for the land is apparent on every page. (Picture book. 6-9)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-399-23320-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1999
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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This vibrant, thoughtful book from Katz (Over the Moon, 1997) continues her tribute to her adopted daughter, Lena, born in Guatemala. Lena is “seven. I am the color of cinnamon. Mom says she could eat me up”; she learns during a painting lesson that to get the color brown, she will have to “mix red, yellow, black, and white paints.” They go for a walk to observe the many shades of brown: they see Sonia, who is the color of creamy peanut butter; Isabella, who is chocolate brown; Lucy, both peachy and tan; Jo-Jin, the color of honey; Kyle, “like leaves in fall”; Mr. Pellegrino, the color of pizza crust, golden brown. Lena realizes that every shade is beautiful, then mixes her paints accordingly for portraits of her friends—“The colors of us!” Bold illustrations celebrate diversity with a child’s open-hearted sensibility and a mother’s love. (Picture book. 6-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-8050-5864-8
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 1999
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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The way-off-road vehicle (The Magic School Bus and the Electric Field, 1997, etc.) tours the ears, eyes, nose, and skin when the assistant principal, Mr. Wilde, accidentally shrinks the school bus and the children on board, commandeering it to deliver a message to Ms. Frizzle. The vehicle plunges into the eye of a police officer, where the students explore the pupil, the cornea, the retina, and the optic nerve leading to the brain. Then it’s on to other senses, via the ear of a small child, the nose of a dog, and the tongue of the Friz herself. Sidebars and captions add to the blizzard of information here; with a combination of plot, details, and jokes, the trip is anything but dull. The facts will certainly entice readers to learn more about the ways living creatures perceive the world. (Picture book. 6-9)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-590-44697-5
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1999
Categories: GENERAL FICTION
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