Bravo! (Early reader. 5-7)
A case of stage fright nearly thwarts Andy and Sandy’s act in this latest installment of dePaola and Lewis’ early-reader series.
When friends Sandy, a tall, ginger-haired white girl, and Andy, a short boy of color with light-brown skin and dark hair, find out about an upcoming talent show, Sandy is very excited to participate. Andy, on the other hand, is less than enthusiastic. While Sandy revels in the possibilities of juggling, tumbling, and hula-hooping, Andy has no talent for such acts. Sandy, ever the encouraging friend, offers to teach him to dance, and he tries to keep up with her. But when the big day arrives, it’s Sandy who freezes on stage and Andy who dances his heart out. Sandy eventually joins him as he gently jostles her about in a series of wordless spreads, resulting in a first-prize win for the pair at the show. Throughout, controlled text with just the right amount of repetition will bolster emergent readers’ access and comfort with decoding, and dePaola’s recognizable style will do the same in pictures that reinforce and expand the verbal story’s content.
Bravo! (Early reader. 5-7)Pub Date: June 13, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4814-7947-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2017
Hest and Bates’ previous joint dog project, The Dog Who Belonged to No One (2008), was a more tender and effective narrative.
Alone at the beach, a black-and-white puppy huddles under the pier until it spots a child.
The blond, white child plays alone with the puppy nearby, feigning indifference even while cataloging the puppy’s lack of tags, big feet, “soft puppy beard,” and “big black eyes.” The persistent, perky pup doesn’t accept the child’s emphatic goodbye and gets an earful about the late, beloved Oscar. “You want to be pals. / Well, we can’t be pals. No sir. No way. / Won’t. Ever. Do. That. Again. Ever. / You know who was my pal? Oscar.” Bates’ striking watercolor-and-pencil illustrations let an autumnal spectrum of muted oranges, yellows, and grays flow across the pages. The spray of the waves, the far-off cries of the gulls, and the salted breeze of the sea are expertly evoked in these frames. But the deficit of honest emotion in Hest’s scenes between puppy and child serves to rebuff rather than involve readers. Even the child’s pervading melancholy is communicated in a sterile, forced manner. “The waves were really, really big, and I was really, really sad.” No one will be surprised that the child eventually takes the puppy in, though readers who might have lost dogs themselves will be taken aback that there is no evidence of a search for this puppy’s owner.
Hest and Bates’ previous joint dog project, The Dog Who Belonged to No One (2008), was a more tender and effective narrative. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: May 3, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4197-1901-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Abrams
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A serviceable title on friendship.
Do friends always have to enjoy the same activities?
Hannah, white with long brown braids and dressed in a deep pink jumper, cheers with her sparkly pompoms. She loves to smile, and she keeps a unicorn in her bike basket. When Sunny Everbright moves in nearby, Hannah imagines a cheerful white blonde dressed in bright colors. To the contrary, Sunny has pale skin and messy black hair, jeans, and black sneakers. She answers “no” to Hannah’s excited questions: “Do you like riding bikes?…Finding butterflies?…Drawing unicorns?” When Hannah tries to “teach Sunny Everbright how to be happy” by saying “For drawing hearts, magenta is your go-to color,” Sunny draws a black spider. When Hannah shows her how to make daisy chains, Sunny finds a spider and a web. When Hannah coos, “If you need a smile, the strawberry is your go-to fruit,” Sunny plops in the mud. Suddenly, it begins to rain, and Sunny begins to enjoy herself. A very confused Hannah finds solace on her jeans-wearing mom’s lap as her mother wisely explains: “We all find happiness in different ways, Hannah.” The next morning, an invitation arrives to “play in the rain,” complete with a lizard twirling a pompom. Comical illustrations are colorful and movement-filled, combining sketching with digital programs; Sunny is likely to be read as either white or Asian. The text can be a little precious but succeeds in validating both girls’ preferences.
A serviceable title on friendship. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-06-232233-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 25, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 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.
