by Walter Wick & photographed by Walter Wick ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2001
Fans of Wick’s and Jean Marzollo’s I Spy series will be thrilled with a new challenge while newcomers will become immediate devotees with this dozen of picture puzzles to search and solve. With Wick’s usual frenzied color-photo montages, each spread has rhyming clues to locate a variety of game objects. The caption of each puzzle indicates the theme, such as “String Game,” “Card Tricks,” “Domino Effect,” and “Magic Mirror.” An author’s note explains that he has combined classic search-and-find puzzles with other familiar types of puzzles. Some are mazes, some are matching games, some are spot-the-difference games, and some are simple cryptic games with a few optical ones for good measure. The cover even contains a rebus for the title. There’s a plastic-jointed, Weeble People-type figure that appears like Waldo in each peripatetic scene. So sharpen your visual acuity and be prepared to be absorbed and engrossed in this amazing entertainment that will keep espyers returning again and again. (Picture book. All ages)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-439-16391-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2002
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by Walter Wick ; illustrated by Walter Wick
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by Julia Alvarez ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2001
Simple, bella, un regalo permenente: simple and beautiful, a gift that will stay.
Renowned Latin American writer Alvarez has created another story about cultural identity, but this time the primary character is 11-year-old Miguel Guzmán.
When Tía Lola arrives to help the family, Miguel and his hermana, Juanita, have just moved from New York City to Vermont with their recently divorced mother. The last thing Miguel wants, as he's trying to fit into a predominantly white community, is a flamboyant aunt who doesn't speak a word of English. Tía Lola, however, knows a language that defies words; she quickly charms and befriends all the neighbors. She can also cook exotic food, dance (anywhere, anytime), plan fun parties, and tell enchanting stories. Eventually, Tía Lola and the children swap English and Spanish ejercicios, but the true lesson is "mutual understanding." Peppered with Spanish words and phrases, Alvarez makes the reader as much a part of the "language" lessons as the characters. This story seamlessly weaves two culturaswhile letting each remain intact, just as Miguel is learning to do with his own life. Like all good stories, this one incorporates a lesson just subtle enough that readers will forget they're being taught, but in the end will understand themselves, and others, a little better, regardless of la lengua nativa—the mother tongue.
Simple, bella, un regalo permenente: simple and beautiful, a gift that will stay. (Fiction. 9-11)Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-375-80215-0
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
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by Julia Alvarez ; illustrated by Raúl Colón
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by Julia Alvarez ; illustrated by Sabra Field
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by Kobi Yamada ; illustrated by Gabriella Barouch ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 15, 2019
More gift book than storybook, this is a meaningful addition to nursery bookshelves
A young child explores the unlimited potential inherent in all humans.
“Have you ever wondered why you are here?” asks the second-person narration. There is no one like you. Maybe you’re here to make a difference with your uniqueness; maybe you will speak for those who can’t or use your gifts to shine a light into the darkness. The no-frills, unrhymed narrative encourages readers to follow their hearts and tap into their limitless potential to be anything and do anything. The precisely inked and colored artwork plays with perspective from the first double-page spread, in which the child contemplates a mountain (or maybe an iceberg) in their hands. Later, they stand on a ladder to place white spots on tall, red mushrooms. The oversized flora and fauna seem to symbolize the presumptively insurmountable, reinforcing the book’s message that anything is possible. This quiet read, with its sophisticated central question, encourages children to reach for their untapped potential while reminding them it won’t be easy—they will make messes and mistakes—but the magic within can help overcome falls and failures. It’s unlikely that members of the intended audience have begun to wonder about their life’s purpose, but this life-affirming mood piece has honorable intentions. The child, accompanied by an adorable piglet and sporting overalls and a bird-beaked cap made of leaves, presents white.
More gift book than storybook, this is a meaningful addition to nursery bookshelves . (Picture book. 2-8)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-946873-75-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
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by Kobi Yamada ; illustrated by Adelina Lirius
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by Kobi Yamada ; illustrated by Charles Santoso
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by Kobi Yamada ; illustrated by Elise Hurst
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