This culturally rich and excitingly original tale is sure to broaden some young readers’ horizons.
In Bulhan’s chapter-book debut, a 7-year-old Somali nomadic girl longs for new responsibilities, hoping to prove herself as capable as her older siblings.
As the middle child, Kiin finds herself caught between stages of life. She’s too old to be carefree, but not old enough for more meaningful tasks, such as goat and sheep herding, which would give her exciting stories to share around her family’s nightly bonfire. She listens to their tales and yearns for adventures of her own—something worthy of capturing everyone’s attention. As Kiin wrestles with her growing frustration to find a good enough story, she gradually discovers her inner strength with support from her parents and siblings. Only when Kiin stops trying to impress others does she finally shine, opting to just be herself. A simple tune she sings while doing her chores (“This time, it was fun, too!”) unexpectedly charms her entire clan, allowing her to relax by the bonfire at last, fully present and at peace. The narrative offers a steady and satisfying amount of introspection from Kiin, naturally drawing readers into her world. The story includes Somali words and expressions throughout, and a thoughtfully compiled glossary provides helpful guidance without interrupting the flow. Although Kiin’s nomadic life may be unfamiliar to some young readers, her navigation of sibling dynamics, interpretation of confusing words from grown-ups, and longing to prove herself will resonate widely. The novel maintains a lighthearted tone, even as it nods to real-world circumstances, referencing war, famine, and family separation with a careful, age-appropriate touch. At the heart of the story lies an invitation to mindfulness, as Kiin learns to quiet her racing thoughts and return to her udubdhexaad, or core, whenever she feels untethered. Bulhan, drawing on her own childhood, succeeds in crafting a story that encourages youngsters to discover their own inner home. Celess’ expressive, grayscale illustrations throughout also help to bring Kiin’s world vividly to life, capturing moments of thrilling danger and quiet intimacy.
This culturally rich and excitingly original tale is sure to broaden some young readers’ horizons.Pub Date: Nov. 18, 2025
ISBN: 9781969922015
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Iftin Ink
Review Posted Online: Nov. 24, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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