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WHAT’S OPPOSITE?

Name: WHAT’S OPPOSITE?
Author: Stephen R. Swinburne
ISBN: 1-56397-881-4

by Stephen R. Swinburne & photographed by Stephen R. Swinburne ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2000

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A photo essay in candy-bright colors that does better with its defining visuals than its text. It’s hard to define “opposites”—“something completely different from another thing.” And grownups might argue with some of the choices: is sitting the opposite of standing? What about lying down? But the pictures tell a nifty story, from the autumn-red country lane facing the blue and silver city; from heavy (a pumpkin) to light (a dandelion puff); from sweet (a girl munching a strawberry) to sour (the same girl puckering a lemon slice). Photos are centered within expanses of white space, sometimes facing their opposites, sometimes sharing the space, and sometimes, as in “Cars and trucks on the highway go in opposite directions,” one photo shows it all. After a few declarative statements, the style turns to question and answer, giving the reader the chance to tell what the opposite is of wet, or full, or eyes closed. The opening page, of two feet, one clad in a tie-dyed sock and one with its little toes each painted a different color, and the last shot, of a tiny baby hand atop an adult one, bookend the images with an opposite of their own. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2000

ISBN: 1-56397-881-4

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Boyds Mills

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2000

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

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BIG TRUCK SUPER WASH
by Stephen R. Swinburne ; illustrated by James Rey Sanchez

- BOOK REVIEW
GIRAFFE MATH
by Stephen R. Swinburne ; illustrated by Geraldo Valério

- BOOK REVIEW
SAFE IN A STORM
by Stephen R. Swinburne ; illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell

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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)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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A BIKE LIKE SERGIO'S

by Maribeth Boelts ; illustrated by Noah Z. Jones ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 4, 2016

Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on...

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Continuing from their acclaimed Those Shoes (2007), Boelts and Jones entwine conversations on money, motives, and morality.

This second collaboration between author and illustrator is set within an urban multicultural streetscape, where brown-skinned protagonist Ruben wishes for a bike like his friend Sergio’s. He wishes, but Ruben knows too well the pressure his family feels to prioritize the essentials. While Sergio buys a pack of football cards from Sonny’s Grocery, Ruben must buy the bread his mom wants. A familiar lady drops what Ruben believes to be a $1 bill, but picking it up, to his shock, he discovers $100! Is this Ruben’s chance to get himself the bike of his dreams? In a fateful twist, Ruben loses track of the C-note and is sent into a panic. After finally finding it nestled deep in a backpack pocket, he comes to a sense of moral clarity: “I remember how it was for me when that money that was hers—then mine—was gone.” When he returns the bill to her, the lady offers Ruben her blessing, leaving him with double-dipped emotions, “happy and mixed up, full and empty.” Readers will be pleased that there’s no reward for Ruben’s choice of integrity beyond the priceless love and warmth of a family’s care and pride.

Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on children. (Picture book. 5-8)