by Virginia Fleming & illustrated by Floyd Cooper ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 27, 1993
``God didn't make mistakes, and Eddie Lee was a mistake if there ever was one,'' muses Christy, trying to justify her reluctance to be kind as Mama has said; and with her friend JimBud, she sets out to look for frogs' eggs, hoping to evade the Down's syndrome boy. Cheerfully ignoring their scorn, Eddie Lee tags along, wades in with his shoes on to try (unsuccessfully) to get a waterlily, then takes Christy to a little pond she hadn't known was there to find both lilies and tadpoles—which Eddie Lee urges leaving there, lest their mother be sad; he's also first sees the beauty of the lilies and the humor in Christy's reflection, distorted by ripples. ``I like you, anyway,'' he assures her, affirming his own humanity, too. What makes Fleming's first book so effective are the carefully selected detail and authentic portrayal of the children's attitudes—as well as Cooper's luminous full-bleed art, summoning up all the enchantment of a lovely summer day and presenting Eddie Lee as believably endearing. (Picture book. 4-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 27, 1993
ISBN: 0-399-21993-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1993
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by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Chloe Dominique ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 5, 2024
Pleasant enough but not particularly original.
Uplifting messages of positivity from the Today show anchor.
Hope springs eternal, so the saying goes. Kotb agrees, here delivering to children the cheery news that hope lives inside all of them and that whatever they might wish for can be theirs. All they need is a sunny outlook, and the possibilities for happy outcomes are virtually endless. Children’s dreams can be in-the-moment ones—like purple ice cream with whipped cream and a cherry—or more far-ranging ones, such as growing tall enough to reach that high shelf easily or for hair that’s long enough to braid. It doesn’t matter, the author reassures young readers. Your aspirations will be realized, so don’t give up on them—just keep believing in them and, most of all, in yourself. Throughout, Kotb calls hope a rainbow, a feeling, a gift, and a wish. Hope is “new friends you’ll find— / friends who are loving and funny and kind.” Hope is “practicing your heart out, letter by letter.” The book’s overarching theme is upbeat, but its bouncy rhyming text is clumsy. The child-appealing illustrations are colorful and lively, though they have a generic look. The cast of wide-eyed characters is racially diverse; some have visible disabilities.
Pleasant enough but not particularly original. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780593624128
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Flamingo Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 16, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
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by Hoda Kotb ; illustrated by Suzie Mason
by William Miller & illustrated by Rodney Pate ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2004
One of the watershed moments in African-American history—the defeat of James Braddock at the hands of Joe Louis—is here given an earnest picture-book treatment. Despite his lack of athletic ability, Sammy wants desperately to be a great boxer, like his hero, getting boxing lessons from his friend Ernie in exchange for help with schoolwork. However hard he tries, though, Sammy just can’t box, and his father comforts him, reminding him that he doesn’t need to box: Joe Louis has shown him that he “can be the champion at anything [he] want[s].” The high point of this offering is the big fight itself, everyone crowded around the radio in Mister Jake’s general store, the imagined fight scenes played out in soft-edged sepia frames. The main story, however, is so bent on providing Sammy and the reader with object lessons that all subtlety is lost, as Mister Jake, Sammy’s father, and even Ernie hammer home the message. Both text and oil-on-canvas-paper illustrations go for the obvious angle, making the effort as a whole worthy, but just a little too heavy-handed. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2004
ISBN: 1-58430-161-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Lee & Low Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2004
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by William Miller & illustrated by Charlotte Riley-Webb
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by William Miller & illustrated by Leonard Jenkins
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by William Miller & illustrated by Susan Keeter
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