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ONE DAY A MAYFLY

Name: ONE DAY A MAYFLY
Author: Shirley Marr
ISBN: 9781536243611

by Shirley Marr ; illustrated by Michael Speechley ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 27, 2025

A tale to have readers seizing the day.

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Mayfly’s life shows that it’s not the days in one’s life that matter, but the life in one’s days.

While Marr’s main text focuses on the titular creature’s brief, single-day existence, Speechley’s accompanying illustrations depict a brown-skinned youngster who sees the insect while walking through a city with a pair of elders (presumably grandparents). As the mayfly zips about, the child follows, with text on buildings and signs offering layers of meaning. Though cartoonish, the sepia-toned illustrations are meticulously detailed, integrating seamlessly with the spare text. The child observes the mayfly’s brief life cycle as words and pictures combine to show how the youngster symbolically moves through the stages of life, too. “Life is a map with no set destination,” an unseen narrator tells us as the child follows the mayfly past a day care, a primary school, a high school, and a university. Later spreads similarly highlight career options, the joy of travel and the arts, and representations of birth (a hospital maternity ward) and death (a funeral procession outside a church). Endpapers designed as calendar pages provide further context for the child’s story, as do framing scenes with a frog who first attempts to discourage the mayfly (“The world out there will eat you up…Not that it matters. You’ll only live for one day anyway”) and then is surprised at her triumphant return after “a perfect day.”

A tale to have readers seizing the day. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: May 27, 2025

ISBN: 9781536243611

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: March 8, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
COUNTDOWN TO YESTERDAY
by Shirley Marr

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ALL FOUR QUARTERS OF THE MOON
by Shirley Marr

- BOOK REVIEW
A GLASSHOUSE OF STARS
by Shirley Marr

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THE MOST MAGNIFICENT THING

by Ashley Spires ; illustrated by Ashley Spires ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2014

Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle...

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Making things is difficult work. Readers will recognize the stages of this young heroine’s experience as she struggles to realize her vision.

First comes anticipation. The artist/engineer is spotted jauntily pulling a wagonload of junkyard treasures. Accompanied by her trusty canine companion, she begins drawing plans and building an assemblage. The narration has a breezy tone: “[S]he makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!” The colorful caricatures and creations contrast with the digital black outlines on a white background that depict an urban neighborhood. Intermittent blue-gray panels break up the white expanses on selected pages showing sequential actions. When the first piece doesn’t turn out as desired, the protagonist tries again, hoping to achieve magnificence. A model of persistence, she tries many adjustments; the vocabulary alone offers constructive behaviors: she “tinkers,” “wrenches,” “fiddles,” “examines,” “stares” and “tweaks.” Such hard work, however, combines with disappointing results, eventually leading to frustration, anger and injury. Explosive emotions are followed by defeat, portrayed with a small font and scaled-down figures. When the dog, whose expressions have humorously mirrored his owner’s through each phase, retrieves his leash, the resulting stroll serves them well. A fresh perspective brings renewed enthusiasm and—spoiler alert—a most magnificent scooter sidecar for a loyal assistant.

Spires’ understanding of the fragility and power of the artistic impulse mixes with expert pacing and subtle characterization for maximum delight. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: April 1, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-55453-704-4

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Kids Can

Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
BYE BYE, BUTTERFLY
developed by Ashley Spires ; adapted by Naseem Hrab ; illustrated by Mike Shiell

- BOOK REVIEW
NO MOUSIE LEFT BEHIND
developed by Ashley Spires ; adapted by Naseem Hrab ; illustrated by Mike Shiell

- BOOK REVIEW
THE MOST MAGNIFICENT MAKER'S A TO Z
by Ashley Spires ; illustrated by Ashley Spires

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)