This picture book about a gemstone composed of nightmares isn’t for little ones.
A tale from Italy via Australia that takes the shine off of diamonds.
Carolina, a little, inquisitive White girl, watches Mama don her diamond earrings as she prepares for a fancy-dress occasion. Carolina asks what the earrings cost. Mama doesn’t know; Uncle Winston gave them to her “because he loves me very much.” Carolina’s quick-fire questions and Mama’s terse answers reveal that Winston purchased them in Antwerp, Belgium, but the jewels were mined in Africa, where Amina, their Black nanny, comes from. When Carolina learns that Amina has no diamonds, Mama abruptly ends the questioning, grabs her clutch, and leaves. After Amina puts her to bed, Carolina dreams, starting with Amina’s digging in a diamond mine, where armed men kill and brutalize the miners, after which a sequence of black-and-white scenes depicts the journey of the gems, which pass through many middlemen, each of whom receives a cut of the profits. Finally, the earrings land in Mama’s hands in a little purple box (the only purple object in the illustrations—notably, a royal color), to her obvious delight. When Carolina awakens crying, it is Amina, not Mama, who comforts her. Greder’s haunting, dark, charcoal-and-pastel images capture the devastation, greed, and secrecy that accompany the diamond trade. The juxtaposition of Amina’s tenderness against Mama’s stern silencing of Carolina’s probing questions speaks volumes. Three afterwords reveal further truths about this destructive industry. (This book was reviewed digitally with 8-by-23-inch double-page spreads viewed at 23.6% of actual size.)
This picture book about a gemstone composed of nightmares isn’t for little ones. (Picture book. 10-adult)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-76087-704-0
Page Count: 36
Publisher: A & U Children/Trafalgar
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2020
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
Being kind and helpful lights up the day from within in this inspiring and idyllic slice-of-life tale.
Actor, social media star, and entrepreneur Brown pens a joyful paean to positive thinking in her children’s debut.
Brown-skinned Tab rides a strawberry-themed bike, accompanied by a curly-haired black dog, Grady. Tab’s dazzling smile and wide eyes signal the upbeat theme echoed in the text, celebrating the sun’s warmth, which “fills everyone up with joy.” But Tab’s mood shifts, as it’s a “cloudy and gray” June day. Alert readers will spot the dog’s smiling countenance and note glimpses of sunny yellow butterflies and flowers. Mama’s reassurance that there’s “always a chance” for sunshine also underscores the optimism. Tab and Grady bike through suburban streets “to find the sun.” Along the way, the two stop to assist a neighbor building a birdhouse, loft a kite for friends Frankie and Fonte, and lend a hand to others, all while still having fun. Mama steers Tab toward an eventual understanding of the real source of joy: Though the sun didn’t appear, “I brightened everyone’s day!” The illustrations subtly underscore the message of this radiant story as touches of gold lighten the palette, which ends with sunny brilliance. Most characters read Black, though Tab’s community includes people who vary in skin tone, body type, and ability.
Being kind and helpful lights up the day from within in this inspiring and idyllic slice-of-life tale. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780063342262
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 21, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2025
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