A joyful and nuanced take on a popular subject.
An ode to the rain reveals the cyclical nature of seasons.
Addressing the rain directly, a child celebrates all that is wonderful about rain, including its “fresh happy smell,” the muddy puddles it creates, and the water it provides for plants. Pale-skinned and dark-haired with round dot eyes and pink circles on their cheeks, the Asian-presenting narrator thanks the rain for “the water for my bath / and for Mom’s herbal tea.” Saturated colors and lush patterns bring a vibrancy to the landscapes, while a variety of compositions ranging from full-page spreads to smaller vignettes add depth. The rain properly glorified, the poem cleverly shifts in tone. “But maybe that’s enough now, Rain.” Creeks are full, animals are huddled under the foliage, and the child must hug their dog close during the thunder. The rain does stop eventually, and outdoor activities resume, including riding a scooter and running through sprinklers. But the hot weather becomes unbearable, and the child implores the rain, “Don’t stay gone forever.” The grass turns brown, and the plants are thirsty. Finally, as the book comes full circle, the rain returns. “Welcome, Rain!” Those who live in climates where the rain disappears for months at a time will especially appreciate the cycle of wet and dry seasons, but children everywhere will identify with the different experiences that rain (or no rain) brings. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A joyful and nuanced take on a popular subject. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781771646956
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Greystone Kids
Review Posted Online: Feb. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts.
In this latest slice in the Food Group series, Humble Pie learns to stand up to a busy friend who’s taking advantage of his pal’s hard work on the sidelines.
Jake the Cake and Humble Pie are good friends. Where Pie is content to toil in the background, Jake happily shines in the spotlight. Alert readers will notice that Pie’s always right there, too, getting A-pluses and skiing expertly just behind—while also doing the support work that keeps every school and social project humming. “Fact: Nobody notices pie when there’s cake nearby!” When the two friends pair up for a science project, things begin well. But when the overcommitted Jake makes excuse after excuse, showing up late or not at all, a panicked Pie realizes that they won’t finish in time. When Jake finally shows up on the night before the project’s due, Pie courageously confronts him. “And for once, I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it.” The friends talk it out and collaborate through the night for the project’s successful presentation in class the next day. John and Oswald’s winning recipe—plentiful puns and delightful visual jokes—has yielded another treat here. The narration does skew didactic as it wraps up: “There’s nothing wrong with having a tough conversation, asking for help, or making sure you’re being treated fairly.” But it’s all good fun, in service of some gentle lessons about social-emotional development.
A flavorful call to action sure to spur young introverts. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9780063469730
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This lacks the information of other nonfiction titles and the pizzazz of April Pulley Sayre’s Go, Go, Grapes! (2012), but it...
The prolific Gibbons tackles fruits—how they grow, their parts, and what portions we eat.
Beginning with facts about perennial and annual fruits and how many servings children should aim for each day, the book then looks at how fruits can grow on plants, bushes, vines, and trees. Good vocabulary is introduced and defined along the way—botanist, pollination, cultivated. The middle of the book is taken up by individual looks at 13 different kinds of fruits that show cutaway views labeled with parts, the whole plant/bush/vine/tree, and some of the popular varieties—for grapes, golden muscat, red flame, and concord. This is followed by a discussion of growing seasons and climates, large farms versus backyard ones, harvesting fruit and getting it to market, and some other fruits that were not featured in the text, including star fruits, apricots, and persimmons. A final page lists more fruit facts and two websites (one for the United States, one for Canada) about food guidelines. The text sometimes gets lost in Gibbons’ busy and full pages, and while her illustrations are detailed and specific for each type of fruit, the watercolors won’t make mouths water.
This lacks the information of other nonfiction titles and the pizzazz of April Pulley Sayre’s Go, Go, Grapes! (2012), but it may be just the ticket before a school trip to a farm. (Informational picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3204-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
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