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YOU ARE AWESOME

Name: YOU ARE AWESOME
Author: Susann Hoffmann
ISBN: 978-0-593-20218-0

by Susann Hoffmann ; illustrated by Susann Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 5, 2020

A (mostly) playful discovery of the awesome qualities that children can notice in themselves and others.

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Funny, kind, brave…this book’s message to kids is that they can be anything.

Each spread shows a child doing something they enjoy, such as making someone laugh, creating a work of art, or helping with chores. The words “You can be…” are at the top of each page in a section of solid-color border that frames the cartoon-style double-page illustration. Each image features a child embodying the adjective they accompany, which is printed in bold, all-capital black type within the illustrated frame. A white child with glasses reads in a caregiver’s lap; the text reads: “You can be…CLEVER.” A black child with a determined grin and puffy pigtails pulls a younger child in a wagon; the text reads: “You can be…STRONG.” This predictable pattern along with the emphatic lines and bold colors will appeal to toddlers and even babies. This is a great read-aloud for talking about personality, temperament, and emotions, but as only positive qualities and attributes are shared, it’s not a full exploration of the emotional-literacy spectrum. The pairing of intellectual attainment with white children who wear glasses plays into stereotypes. In a disappointing tableau, one of these children is depicted in the foreground, with tidy hair and a bow tie, listening attentively as an adult reads aloud while two other children in the background, one a child of color, display preschooler-appropriate wiggles.

A (mostly) playful discovery of the awesome qualities that children can notice in themselves and others. (Picture book. 1-4)

Pub Date: May 5, 2020

ISBN: 978-0-593-20218-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Philomel

Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
PET THAT CAT!
by Nigel Kidd & Rachel Braunigan ; illustrated by Susann Hoffmann

- BOOK REVIEW
PET THAT DOG!
by Gideon Kidd & Rachel Braunigan ; illustrated by Susann Hoffmann

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A KISSING HAND FOR CHESTER RACCOON

From the Kissing Hand series

by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2014

Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...

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A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.

As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.

Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)

Pub Date: April 1, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4

Page Count: 14

Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing

Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
CHESTER RACCOON AND THE ALMOST PERFECT SLEEPOVER
by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson

- BOOK REVIEW
KAI TO THE RESCUE!
by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Mike Yamada

- BOOK REVIEW
A COLOR GAME FOR CHESTER RACCOON
by Audrey Penn & illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson

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ABCS OF KINDNESS

by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Summer Macon ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 24, 2019

Light, friendly, and not at all preachy—a gentle win for a kinder world.

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Rhyming couplets use the alphabet to simply explain the abstract concept of kindness.

Each letter of the alphabet stands for a word that adds nuance to the notion while line drawings of pink-cheeked stuffed animals—bear, bunny, elephant, mouse, lion, and giraffe—illustrate the behavior. The verses hint at exactly how to act kindly. Some are concrete: “Ii is for inviting everyone to play.” Some suggest attitudes that facilitate kindness. For example, “Bb is for believing things will be okay in the end!” and “Hh is for hope—tomorrow’s another day!” While many might take issue with the simplistic assertion that “Ee is for everyone—we are all the same,” taken as a whole, the book will lead even the youngest toddlers to the message. Organizationally, the book devotes one page each to 11 letters while 14 others share pages. “Zz is sleeping peacefully when your day of kindness is through” sprawls across a final double-page spread, showing all the animals fast asleep. Creating an ABC book is harder than this makes it look. The true test is what is chosen to represent Q, X, Y, and Z. “Quiet times,” “Yes I can,” and the aforementioned “zzz”s ably rise to the challenge. “Xx is for kisses” is a bit of a stretch but understandable. Pastel backgrounds, uncluttered design, and unforced rhymes keep the focus on the concept.