A tender and sympathetic tale of change and hope.
A young girl learns that a new home can mean new adventures thanks to a care package from someone special.
Beatrice loves her cozy home with Gram, her fathers (Dad and Papa), and her cat, Agnes. Whether she’s taking in nature, enjoying high tea with Agnes, or looking at Gram’s scrapbook of memories, she’s happiest when they’re all together. But her world is upended when Papa receives unexpected news of a new job in a faraway city. Saying goodbye to Gram is the hardest of all. Adjusting is a challenge, and Beatrice wonders if this new place will ever feel like home. One day, Beatrice receives a package in the mail from Gram containing a camera, a blank scrapbook, art supplies, and a sweet note inviting her to embrace new adventures. With renewed hope, Beatrice explores her city with fresh eyes. Each new memory finds its way into the scrapbook—photos, drawings, and paintings galore. Overjoyed when Gram makes a surprise visit, Beatrice shares her own precious memories with a full heart. Moving can be difficult for children; Grady does an excellent job of both capturing Beatrice’s big feelings and offering a sweet message of optimism. His digitally created, collagelike illustrations are simple yet effective. Beatrice, Gram, and Papa are brown-skinned; Dad is pale-skinned.
A tender and sympathetic tale of change and hope. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 8, 2025
ISBN: 9780593696354
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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