A modest call to individuality.
A young fashionista finds the perfect fit.
Birdie steps away from trendy footwear (Birdie's Big-Girl Shoes, 2009) when she realizes her too-snug party dress simply won't do. This birthday girl models an array of choices at the nearby boutique (“fabulously frilly sundress,” “lacy sheath” and “gauzy gown” included) but none feel "just like her." A return trip home and up the attic stairs reveals eclectic finery to suit the event—and her personality to boot. It's refreshing that Birdie's posh mom (her elongated figure emphasizes each sophisticated move) is far from rigid; this supportive parent encourages her daughter's mismatched ensemble, a hodgepodge of her grandpa's vest and bow-tie with flowing, boldly pattered skirt and whimsical, floral head-piece. As Birdie shimmies into each potentially restrictive outfit, Rim's illustrations capture each half-hearted shrug and sucked-in breath. Collage and watercolor accents lend a sensory feel to chromatic, textured design, though it's a pity the narration does not match the illustrations' or its subject's exuberance. The inclusion of Birdie's friends appears as an afterthought, but canine companion Monster remains a supportive secondary choice, dressed to the nines in his top hat to rave reviews (“Monster felt so… dapper!”).
A modest call to individuality. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-316-13287-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Though this celebration of community is joyful, there just is not much here.
A sugary poem, very loosely based on the familiar song, lacks focus.
Using only the refrain from the original (“One love, one heart, let’s get together and feel all right!”), the reggae great’s daughter Cedella Marley sees this song as her “happy song” and adapts it for children. However, the adaptation robs it of life. After the opening lines, readers familiar with the original song (or the tourism advertisement for Jamaica) will be humming along only to be stopped by the bland lines that follow: “One love, what the flower gives the bee.” and then “One love, what Mother Earth gives the tree.” Brantley-Newton’s sunny illustrations perfectly reflect the saccharine quality of the text. Starting at the beginning of the day, readers see a little girl first in bed, under a photograph of Bob Marley, the sun streaming into her room, a bird at the window. Each spread is completely redundant—when the text is about family love, the illustration actually shows little hearts floating from her parents to the little girl. An image of a diverse group getting ready to plant a community garden, walking on top of a river accompanies the words “One love, like the river runs to the sea.”
Though this celebration of community is joyful, there just is not much here. (afterword) (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Oct. 5, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-4521-0224-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
Will make readers fall in love with the city depicted within.
From a nurse to an emergency dispatcher, a look at the city dwellers whose work begins when the sun goes down.
Reading this book is like looking through a telescope—there are windows on nearly every page; some pages feature rectangular, windowlike vignettes of people at work. On the front cover, a taxi driver is visible through the side window of a cab, with a dog sitting up in the back seat. Above them, on an upper floor, a museum worker is doing some vacuuming, with dinosaur bones in the background. Many of the people can be seen only from a great distance, and the details we learn about them often come from just a few spare sentences: “The museum is closed, but the janitor and security guard are hard at work.” Downing’s blue-tinged, cozy artwork sometimes makes words almost unnecessary—in this case, the accompanying illustration says it all, a full spread showing the janitor reaching up to dust the nose of a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton. Most of the people who are working late seem to be smiling, and while it’s difficult to find a message in the limited text, readers will close the book feeling that there’s joy to be found in every job and every schedule. The residents of this urban environment are diverse in skin tone. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Will make readers fall in love with the city depicted within. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 14, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-8234-5206-4
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Neal Porter/Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
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