Italics and exclamation points may be overused, but this new humorous series is full of gently amusing magical surprises.
Shades of Bewitched, the old TV show featuring a witch married to a regular guy.
This new chapter-book series stars Pandora, a white girl with two grandmas—the good witch, Granny Crow, in a patterned minidress, whose magical powers enliven any party or school outing, and Granny Podmore, in her cardigan and plaid skirt, a kind but stereotypical grandmother who cleans and cooks. Pandora’s friends include Nellie, a black girl, and Nellie’s mom is also depicted as black in the exuberant line drawings with gray washes. The three chapterlong adventures are rather tame, meant for readers who want fun rather than fright. In “The Super-Spooky Fright Night!” (all titles have exclamation points), the two grandmothers host a Halloween party. Granny Crow creates “bat-shaped cookies that hung around the bowls, and a custard cat (that actually meowed!).” Granny Podmore makes “the neatest swans” from napkins. Granny Crow conjures up musical broomsticks when Granny Podmore wants to introduce musical chairs. The evening ends happily when Granny Podmore uses Ollie, her vacuum cleaner, to suck up little pumpkins from Granny Crow’s pumpkin pop gone wild. Only Granny Crow appears in the other stories, making teddy bears come alive to give a “teddy bears’ picnic!” and causing a nasty teacher to accidentally cast a spell that turns a school swimming lesson into utter chaos.
Italics and exclamation points may be overused, but this new humorous series is full of gently amusing magical surprises. (Fantasy. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-8653-6
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
An enjoyable, endearing collection.
A young girl learns that she doesn’t have to be big to make a difference.
Tola lives in Lagos, Nigeria, with her siblings—sister Moji and brother Dapo, who call her “Too Small Tola” because she is the smallest—under the care of their grandmother. Each of the three short chapters tells of Tola’s adventures while immersing readers in Lagos daily life. In Tola’s first adventure, Grandmommy chooses Tola to take shopping, causing Tola to panic as she worries she won’t be able to carry their purchases. After collecting everything from Grandmommy’s seemingly never-ending list, they make their way home, taking plenty of breaks that leave Tola’s siblings jealous. For her second adventure, she must collect water from the well near their building and then make it to school on time, but she must conquer a mean, older kid first. Tola’s final adventure occurs during a time of celebrations when Eid falls at the same time as Easter. Readers follow along as Tola takes on the challenge of measuring clients for Mr. Abdul—a tailor who lives in Tola’s building—after he breaks his leg. This collection of stories is perfect for transitioning readers, with its manageable chapters, clear, plain language, simple sentence structures, wry sense of humor, and realistic illustrations of the diverse Nigerian cast. While some elements may be unfamiliar to readers outside Tola’s culture, readers will find anchors in Tola’s relationships.
An enjoyable, endearing collection. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1127-6
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A deeply felt narrative, distilled from contemporary reports and documents.
A Southern novelist looks to the Civil War’s immediate aftermath in this newly free child’s account of a weary search for his mother.
“War’s over. Government say we free. Folks be on the move. Getting the feel for freedom. Not me.” He joins the large number of ex-slaves who, “all hope and hurry on,” have hit the road in search of brighter futures, but young Gabe has a different goal: tracking down his sold-away and only living parent Rosie Lee. Keeping his goal before him like the fixed North Star, he travels for months from Mobile to the “worn-down toes of the Appalachian Mountains,” following vague leads from sympathetic listeners and offices of the Freedman’s Bureau, enduring hardships and disappointment. Applying paint in thickly brushed impasto, Shepherd views Gabe’s world and encounters from a child’s-eye height but gives the barefoot, raggedly clad boy a look of hard-won maturity that points to past sorrows and underscores the depth of his determination. His distinct voice will draw readers into caring about his quest and sharing the tide of joy that accompanies his ultimate success: “That night, I slept snuggled up tight with my mama, praying for all those boys like me searching for their mamas who be searching for them.”
A deeply felt narrative, distilled from contemporary reports and documents. (afterword) (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-933693-97-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Cinco Puntos Press
Review Posted Online: June 20, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2011
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