Didactic it may be, but until our schools are bully-free, this provides kids an easy way to remember to STAND together and...
One of a line of character-building titles, this focuses on standing up to people who are bullying others.
Three short chapters show how the MVP Kids use STAND to stop the bullying: “Stand tall and be confident. Tell an adult if you run into trouble. Act bravely and walk away if you need to. Notice what is going on around you. Display kindness to others.” On a hike, Lucas refuses to ostracize an unpopular boy, befriending him instead. Faith stops two kids from “intimidating” another student. And Leo leans on his friends (much as he leans on his walker) for help standing up to Charlie when he picks on another kid. With its short, simple tales, follow-up questions about each story and its application to real life, and notes for adults, this is clearly meant for use in an educational setting. The notes focus on various forms of bullying (verbal, mental, social) and showing kindness to everyone, bullies included; empathizing with bullies, the bullied, and bystanders as well as using role play to practice responses; and getting adults involved to prevent future bullying. The book’s format and illustrations look like those found in early readers—short sentences and a sans serif font in different sizes and colors. The MVP Kids include two girls and six boys; three are brown, five are pale. Digital illustrations are as unvarnished as the text; this is a book that puts message above art.
Didactic it may be, but until our schools are bully-free, this provides kids an easy way to remember to STAND together and be kind. (Informational early reader. 4-10)Pub Date: Sept. 25, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-64255-232-4
Page Count: 72
Publisher: Real MVP Kids
Review Posted Online: July 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
Hundreds of pages of unbridled uplift boiled down to 40.
From two Nobel Peace Prize winners, an invitation to look past sadness and loneliness to the joy that surrounds us.
Bobbing in the wake of 2016’s heavyweight Book of Joy (2016), this brief but buoyant address to young readers offers an earnest insight: “If you just focus on the thing that is making / you sad, then the sadness is all you see. / But if you look around, you will / see that joy is everywhere.” López expands the simply delivered proposal in fresh and lyrical ways—beginning with paired scenes of the authors as solitary children growing up in very different circumstances on (as they put it) “opposite sides of the world,” then meeting as young friends bonded by streams of rainbow bunting and going on to share their exuberantly hued joy with a group of dancers diverse in terms of age, race, culture, and locale while urging readers to do the same. Though on the whole this comes off as a bit bland (the banter and hilarity that characterized the authors’ recorded interchanges are absent here) and their advice just to look away from the sad things may seem facile in view of what too many children are inescapably faced with, still, it’s hard to imagine anyone in the world more qualified to deliver such a message than these two. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Hundreds of pages of unbridled uplift boiled down to 40. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-48423-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Aug. 30, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2022
Engaging, well-chosen images and a clear, coherent text illuminate the importance of empathy for the world’s inhabitants.
Large color photographs (occasionally composed of montages) and accessible, simple text highlight global similarities and differences, always focusing on our universal connections.
While child readers may not recognize Manzano, the Puerto Rican actress who played Maria on Sesame Street, adults will recognize her as a trusted diverse voice. In her endnote, she explains her desire to “encourage lively conversations about shared experiences.” Starting out with the familiar, home and community, the text begins with “How many WONDERFUL PEOPLE do you know?” Then it moves out to the world: “Did you know there are about 8 BILLION PEOPLE on the planet?” The photo essay features the usual concrete similarities and differences found in many books of this type, such as housing (a Mongolian yurt opposite a Hong Kong apartment building overlooking a basketball court), food (dumplings, pizza, cotton candy, a churro, etc.), and school. Manzano also makes sure to point out likenesses in emotions, as shown in a montage of photos from countries including China, Spain, Kashmir (Pakistan/India), and the United States. At the end, a world map and thumbnail images show the locations of all photos, revealing a preponderance of examples from the U.S. and a slight underrepresentation for Africa and South America.
Engaging, well-chosen images and a clear, coherent text illuminate the importance of empathy for the world’s inhabitants. (Informational picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4263-3738-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: National Geographic Kids
Review Posted Online: May 2, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2020
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