A sweet, contemplative tale of friendship and discovering one’s voice.
A child who finds the world too noisy decides to live inside a whale.
During what appears to be a sibling’s birthday party, an Asian-presenting child with two spiky pigtails hides out in another room reading a book on whales, a “Do not disturb” sign hanging nearby. Inspired, the child fashions a small boat, tapes a drawing of a whale head to the wall, and sails into the whale’s gaping mouth. Inside, it’s dark and quiet, “just the way I preferred.” But a shrieking boy, who also appears to be Asian, rolls in from the party on a skateboard, bringing with him “everything I was running away from.” The loud boy and the narrator make a deal: After he’s quiet for half the day, the narrator will then acknowledge him. As promised, the narrator entrances the boy with stories of all kinds as the art shifts from more muted blues to bright colors and whirlwinds of fantastic landscapes. In a poignant moment, the narrator reveals the reason for being in the whale: to “hear my own voice.” This gives the boy an idea, allowing for a return to the real world with his new friend. Cozy artwork visually depicts both the cacophony of the world and the young narrator’s flights of fancy. This is a gentle, relatable story about a child with sensory sensitivity finding a way to forge connections with others.
A sweet, contemplative tale of friendship and discovering one’s voice. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2024
ISBN: 9780316492270
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 4, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned.
All the reasons why a daughter needs a mother.
Each spread features an adorable cartoon animal parent-child pair on the recto opposite a rhyming verse: “I’ll always support you in giving your all / in every endeavor, the big and the small, / and be there to catch you in case you should fall. / I hope you believe this is true.” A virtually identical book, Why a Daughter Needs a Dad, publishes simultaneously. Both address standing up for yourself and your values, laughing to ease troubles, being thankful, valuing friendship, persevering and dreaming big, being truthful, thinking through decisions, and being open to differences, among other topics. Though the sentiments/life lessons here and in the companion title are heartfelt and important, there are much better ways to deliver them. These books are likely to go right over children’s heads and developmental levels (especially with the rather advanced vocabulary); their parents are the more likely audience, and for them, the books provide some coaching in what kids need to hear. The two books are largely interchangeable, especially since there are so few references to mom or dad, but one spread in each book reverts to stereotype: Dad balances the two-wheeler, and mom helps with clothing and hair styles. Since the books are separate, it aids in customization for many families.
New parents of daughters will eat these up and perhaps pass on the lessons learned. (Picture book. 4-8, adult)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-6781-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2019
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
Rabe follows a young girl through her first 12 days of kindergarten in this book based on the familiar Christmas carol.
The typical firsts of school are here: riding the bus, making friends, sliding on the playground slide, counting, sorting shapes, laughing at lunch, painting, singing, reading, running, jumping rope, and going on a field trip. While the days are given ordinal numbers, the song skips the cardinal numbers in the verses, and the rhythm is sometimes off: “On the second day of kindergarten / I thought it was so cool / making lots of friends / and riding the bus to my school!” The narrator is a white brunette who wears either a tunic or a dress each day, making her pretty easy to differentiate from her classmates, a nice mix in terms of race; two students even sport glasses. The children in the ink, paint, and collage digital spreads show a variety of emotions, but most are happy to be at school, and the surroundings will be familiar to those who have made an orientation visit to their own schools.
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of Kindergarten (2003), it basically gets the job done. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: June 21, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016
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BOOK REVIEW
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