Deeply affecting.
Hole once again tackles the hard issues in children’s literature, this time grief, with his now-signature blend of beautiful, thoughtful and quirky images (Garmann’s Secret, 2012, etc.).
Opening endpapers pay tribute to artist Magritte and begin a series of symbolic patterns with nails falling from a blue sky with puffy clouds. The quiet story starts as Anna, a girl with bold red hair, and her restless father prepare to do something difficult. Numerous clues, including a cloudlike woman’s face looking down from the sky, tell readers that the young girl’s mother has died before Anna acknowledges it. As Anna begins to ask such difficult questions as “How can God keep his eye on everyone?” her world turns dreamlike with Italianate designs and surreal imagery. Soon Anna and her father fly through a hole in the sky—which appears airy on some pages, as an underwater world on others and even a mix with butterflies and jellyfish floating together—as they make their way to heaven. They take turns questioning and offering possibilities (“Perhaps she’s in Paradise, doing some weeding”), finding comfort in their personal reflections, even if they don’t have all the answers. A hopeful ending offers a fitting closure to this intelligent picture book that will resonate with grieving children and adults alike. Readers of Hole’s previous books will also find subtle humor in repeat characters.
Deeply affecting. (Picture book. 8-11, adult)Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-8028-5441-4
Page Count: 42
Publisher: Eerdmans
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
Certain to elicit both gales of giggles and winces of sympathy (not to mention recognition) from young readers.
First volume of a planned three, this edited version of an ongoing online serial records a middle-school everykid’s triumphs and (more often) tribulations through the course of a school year.
Largely through his own fault, mishaps seem to plague Greg at every turn, from the minor freak-outs of finding himself permanently seated in class between two pierced stoners and then being saddled with his mom for a substitute teacher, to being forced to wrestle in gym with a weird classmate who has invited him to view his “secret freckle.” Presented in a mix of legible “hand-lettered” text and lots of simple cartoon illustrations with the punch lines often in dialogue balloons, Greg’s escapades, unwavering self-interest and sardonic commentary are a hoot and a half.
Certain to elicit both gales of giggles and winces of sympathy (not to mention recognition) from young readers. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: April 1, 2007
ISBN: 0-8109-9313-9
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Amulet/Abrams
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2007
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
PERSPECTIVES
Wholesome? Yes. Proper hard work and teamwork values in place? Yes. Paint by numbers? Oh, yes.
Olympic gold medalist Morgan runs down the celebrity-sports-fiction checklist in this series opener: New school? Check. New friends? Check. New boyfriend? Maybe! New soccer team? Check. Inspire said team to take on snooty archrival private school? Check.
Quickly shedding perfunctory initial reservations, Devin sails into seventh grade at Kentville Middle School, makes instant connections in class and at Kangaroos soccer tryouts. She meets requisite bully Mirabelle at the latter, then goes on to be elected team co-captain. After a disastrous start to the season, she helps her team’s members and even the less-than-rigorous coach land on the same winning page. Following a sleepover, a dance, team-building drills and exercises, pep rallies, minor problem-solving and motivational strategizing, Devin prods the Kangaroos into position to beat the haughty Pinewood Panthers in a climactic rematch while also schooling Mirabelle, who has jumped ship to join the rival team.
Wholesome? Yes. Proper hard work and teamwork values in place? Yes. Paint by numbers? Oh, yes. (soccer glossary) (Fiction. 8-10)Pub Date: May 7, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4424-8570-9
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 26, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
