Less rhapsody than lost opportunity. Let this one bite the dust or risk going stone-cold crazy.
An illustrated exploration of the iconic British rockers.
In a tongue-in-cheek “Recipe for Queen,” this picture book describes its subject as “an intense, sophisticated dish with surprising ingredients.” Despite an equally startling formula, Romero Mariño’s account will leave readers who want it all from their band biographies yearning to break free. Though the narrative follows a roughly chronological sequence, it can’t seem to decide whether it’s focused on Freddie Mercury, who dominates its pages, or the entire band. An opening spread sharing key dates from Mercury’s life gives way to a timeline of the band’s career, then careens into a full 10 pages solely devoted to the legendary frontman. (Excepting the ethnically Parsi Mercury, all band members are white.) Brief profiles of each band member separate a section conveying their origin story from a capsule history of their early years. The text—an uncredited Google Translate–esque interpretation of a Spanish-language original—stumbles along, rife with passive voice, strange syntax, and awkward phrasing. Imagined scenes depicting key moments in Queen’s history suffer from stilted dialogue while pull quotes seem more filler than enticing highlight. The book concludes with the radio debut of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” but images ostensibly intended as appendices drag this chronicle beyond its obvious terminus. Despite it all, Castelló’s whimsical illustrations shine, offering die-hard fans a reason to keep themselves alive.
Less rhapsody than lost opportunity. Let this one bite the dust or risk going stone-cold crazy. (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7282-1091-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Review Posted Online: May 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
With powerful art from a bold new talent, this is a probing and sensitive take on a devastating chapter of U.S. history.
“How do you tell a story / that starts in Africa / and ends in horror?”
Alexander uses multiple voices to weave this poem about a teacher who takes on the difficult but necessary task of starting a classroom conversation about slavery. Between the theft of people from the African continent and the sale of people in America, from the ships that brought them and the ocean that swallowed some of them to their uncompensated work and the breakup of families, Alexander introduces objections from the implied listeners (“But you can’t sell people,” “That’s not fair”), despair from the narrating adult, encouragement from the youth, and ultimately an answer to the repeated question about how to tell this story. Rising star Coulter’s mixed-media art elevates the lyrical text with clarity and deep emotion: Using sculpted forms and paintings for the historical figures gives them a unique texture and lifelike fullness, while the charcoal drawings on yellow paper used for the present-day student-teacher interactions invite readers to step inside. Where Coulter combines the two, connecting past with present, the effect is stunning. Both young readers and adults unsure of how to talk about this painful past with children will find valuable insights.
With powerful art from a bold new talent, this is a probing and sensitive take on a devastating chapter of U.S. history. (author’s and illustrator’s notes) (Informational picture book. 6-10)Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-316-47312-5
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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