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MY MOM

Name: MY MOM
Author: Susan Quinn
ISBN: 9780711296695

by Susan Quinn ; illustrated by Sarah Mathew ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 25, 2025

A lovely tale to snuggle up with.

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The mother-child bond is unbreakable.

In gentle, lyrical prose, a youngster pays tribute to Mom. The narrator’s mother says that the little one’s arrival “was like a star drifting down from the sky and into her life.” Mom had long dreamed of that day, though she feared it might never happen. That’s the day the two of them “started our amazing adventure, together.” Since then, life’s gotten even better. The pair push their imaginations to the limit, navigating a ship around their garden, riding a rocket into space, and having a picnic on the moon. No worries if a toy breaks: “Mom can fix anything!” Mom boosts her child’s self-esteem and helps the youngster feel “safe and strong,” capable of meeting the world confidently. The two explore the outdoors, delighting in nature’s wonders. Indoors, they enjoy creative endeavors such as drawing. Their whole day is one grand, loving adventure. Nighttime brings hugs and stories—and Mom’s reaffirmation that she loved her child even when the youngster “was just a dream.” The delicate, childlike, very appealing illustrations, which occasionally incorporate what seem to be an actual youngster’s drawings, suit the graceful text. Many caregivers will especially relate to Mom’s uncertainty that she’ll ever have a child; the ambiguity about the child’s arrival will allow a variety of families, including adoptive ones, to see themselves reflected. Mom and her child are light-skinned. Though it’s never mentioned, Mom has a limb difference.

A lovely tale to snuggle up with. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2025

ISBN: 9780711296695

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Words & Pictures

Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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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

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by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Jim Valeri

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by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

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by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)