A solid offering about mindfulness, best if introduced by supportive adults.
Be thankful for everything in your universe.
Navigating life’s challenges is difficult. How to cope? Berger suggests children turn introspective and consider what they’re grateful for—alphabetically. (As she notes, this mindfulness exercise might even help kids achieve restful sleep.) Her ideas are simply formatted, though kids will find some alphabetical headings easier than others to comprehend. “D is for Dogs,” “L is for Laughter,” “M is for Music,” “N is for Nature,” and “Q is for Quiet" (the only text here: “thank you!”) are clear enough. Other headings and explanations may go over children’s heads, as they’re of a more philosophical bent, but they might well enrich readers’ vocabulary: “P is for Perspective,” “R is for Resilience,” “U is for Unconditional Love,” and “Z is the Zone of gratitude.” Especially welcome: “O is for Older people” (whose corollary is “Y is for Younger people”). This title will probably work best if shared only one or several pages at a time, so as to facilitate contemplative conversations. Grown-ups should encourage children to write or draw what they’re personally grateful for. The bright illustrations are a bit bland; wide-eyed characters are diverse in terms of skin tone and age. One child uses a wheelchair; another wears a hijab.
A solid offering about mindfulness, best if introduced by supportive adults. (author’s and illustrator’s notes) (Picture book. 5-9)Pub Date: Aug. 19, 2025
ISBN: 9781250905123
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for...
A gentle voice and familiar pitfalls characterize this tale of a boy navigating the risky road to responsibility.
Gavin is new to his neighborhood and Carver Elementary. He likes his new friend, Richard, and has a typically contentious relationship with his older sister, Danielle. When Gavin’s desire to impress Richard sets off a disastrous chain of events, the boy struggles to evade responsibility for his actions. “After all, it isn’t his fault that Danielle’s snow globe got broken. Sure, he shouldn’t have been in her room—but then, she shouldn’t be keeping candy in her room to tempt him. Anybody would be tempted. Anybody!” opines Gavin once he learns the punishment for his crime. While Gavin has a charming Everyboy quality, and his aversion to Aunt Myrtle’s yapping little dog rings true, little about Gavin distinguishes him from other trouble-prone protagonists. He is, regrettably, forgettable. Coretta Scott King Honor winner English (Francie, 1999) is a teacher whose storytelling usually benefits from her day job. Unfortunately, the pizzazz of classroom chaos is largely absent from this series opener.
This outing lacks the sophistication of such category standards as Clementine; here’s hoping English amps things up for subsequent volumes. (Fiction. 6-9)Pub Date: Dec. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-547-97044-8
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 1, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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