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A DREAM OF BIRDS

Name: A DREAM OF BIRDS
Author: Shenaz Patel
ISBN: 978-1-66250-093-0

by Shenaz Patel ; illustrated by Emmanuelle Tchoukriel ; translated by Edwige-Renée Dro ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 16, 2022

A soaring promise that having the courage to act on one’s dreams is all that really matters.

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Making a rash but worthy choice, a child frees a neighbor’s caged flock of tropical birds.

When young Sara sees that the strange little wire house she passes on her way to school has been filled with noisy parakeets, she remembers how cardinals, cape canaries, and turtledoves used to gather in her grandpa’s yard every afternoon to chirp and coo—and snatch at the handful of rice he would throw in the air at 4:00 each afternoon. The next day, she opens the cage and accepts the ensuing punishment from her parents…who tell her, worrisomely, that birds not used to being free might not be able to fend for themselves. That night, though, she dreams of flocks of brown and lesser noddies, terns, and other birds flying free in the nature preserve on nearby Cocos Island and is reassured: “All will be well, as long as the world has wings to dream.” Some of the act’s consequences are a bit glossed over, but its profound rewards are clear. Patel sets her tale on her native island of Mauritius (where it was originally published, in French), and for her illustrations Tchoukriel not only depicts settings and the dark-skinned residents, but also the many birds in careful, exact detail. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A soaring promise that having the courage to act on one’s dreams is all that really matters. (Picture book. 6-8)

Pub Date: Aug. 16, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-66250-093-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Amazon Crossing Kids

Review Posted Online: Oct. 18, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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WHAT THE ROAD SAID

by Cleo Wade ; illustrated by Lucie de Moyencourt ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 23, 2021

Inspiration, shrink wrapped.

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From an artist, poet, and Instagram celebrity, a pep talk for all who question where a new road might lead.

Opening by asking readers, “Have you ever wanted to go in a different direction,” the unnamed narrator describes having such a feeling and then witnessing the appearance of a new road “almost as if it were magic.” “Where do you lead?” the narrator asks. The Road’s twice-iterated response—“Be a leader and find out”—bookends a dialogue in which a traveler’s anxieties are answered by platitudes. “What if I fall?” worries the narrator in a stylized, faux hand-lettered type Wade’s Instagram followers will recognize. The Road’s dialogue and the narration are set in a chunky, sans-serif type with no quotation marks, so the one flows into the other confusingly. “Everyone falls at some point, said the Road. / But I will always be there when you land.” Narrator: “What if the world around us is filled with hate?” Road: “Lead it to love.” Narrator: “What if I feel stuck?” Road: “Keep going.” De Moyencourt illustrates this colloquy with luminous scenes of a small, brown-skinned child, face turned away from viewers so all they see is a mop of blond curls. The child steps into an urban mural, walks along a winding country road through broad rural landscapes and scary woods, climbs a rugged metaphorical mountain, then comes to stand at last, Little Prince–like, on a tiny blue and green planet. Wade’s closing claim that her message isn’t meant just for children is likely superfluous…in fact, forget the just.

Inspiration, shrink wrapped. (Picture book. 6-8, adult)

Pub Date: March 23, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-250-26949-2

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Review Posted Online: April 7, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
MAY YOU LOVE AND BE LOVED
by Cleo Wade ; illustrated by Cleo Wade

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WAITING IS NOT EASY!

From the Elephant & Piggie series

by Mo Willems ; illustrated by Mo Willems ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 4, 2014

A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends

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Gerald the elephant learns a truth familiar to every preschooler—heck, every human: “Waiting is not easy!”

When Piggie cartwheels up to Gerald announcing that she has a surprise for him, Gerald is less than pleased to learn that the “surprise is a surprise.” Gerald pumps Piggie for information (it’s big, it’s pretty, and they can share it), but Piggie holds fast on this basic principle: Gerald will have to wait. Gerald lets out an almighty “GROAN!” Variations on this basic exchange occur throughout the day; Gerald pleads, Piggie insists they must wait; Gerald groans. As the day turns to twilight (signaled by the backgrounds that darken from mauve to gray to charcoal), Gerald gets grumpy. “WE HAVE WASTED THE WHOLE DAY!…And for WHAT!?” Piggie then gestures up to the Milky Way, which an awed Gerald acknowledges “was worth the wait.” Willems relies even more than usual on the slightest of changes in posture, layout and typography, as two waiting figures can’t help but be pretty static. At one point, Piggie assumes the lotus position, infuriating Gerald. Most amusingly, Gerald’s elephantine groans assume weighty physicality in spread-filling speech bubbles that knock Piggie to the ground. And the spectacular, photo-collaged images of the Milky Way that dwarf the two friends makes it clear that it was indeed worth the wait.

A lesson that never grows old, enacted with verve by two favorite friends . (Early reader. 6-8)