Inspiring and up, up, and away all the way.
For Beverley Bass, the sky had no limits.
Bass always dreamed of taking to the skies. In her teens, she took flying lessons and earned her license. Her flights of fancy transcended recreational soaring, though: She yearned to be an airline pilot—when only men had that job. Undeterred, Bass continued training, earned more licenses, and took jobs male pilots turned down or left when better ones arose. Thanks to intelligence, determination, and skill, she developed solid experience and established an enviable reputation. Bass’ big breaks came when American Airlines hired her as a flight engineer, then promoted her to co-pilot. Her lifelong aspiration became a reality when she became the first woman ever to captain an American Airlines commercial airliner. More history-making achievements followed. Then came 9/11. Flying from Paris to Dallas, Bass’ jet was directed to Gander, Newfoundland, along with 37 other carriers, when U.S. airspace was closed after the twin towers fell. This is a soaring tale, told with verve by Bass herself together with Williams. The retro, cartoonish illustrations might seem at odds with the recent setting, but they succeed with this narrative, as they also evoke spirited enthusiasm. The artwork, starring a smiling, plucky white, blonde Bass, embraces people of color as well as of various ages, including among airline professionals; readers will notice graying and gray-haired individuals.
Inspiring and up, up, and away all the way. (biographical note) (Picture book/biography. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-64549-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: May 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2019
A solid addition to Rotner’s seasonal series. Bring on summer.
Rotner follows up her celebrations of spring and autumn with this look at all things winter.
Beginning with the signs that winter is coming—bare trees, shorter days, colder temperatures—Rotner eases readers into the season. People light fires and sing songs on the solstice, trees and plants stop growing, and shadows grow long. Ice starts to form on bodies of water and windows. When the snow flies, the fun begins—bundle up and then build forts, make snowballs and snowmen (with eyebrows!), sled, ski (nordic is pictured), skate, snowshoe, snowboard, drink hot chocolate. Animals adapt to the cold as well. “Birds grow more feathers” (there’s nothing about fluffing and air insulation) and mammals, more hair. They have to search for food, and Rotner discusses how many make or find shelter, slow down, hibernate, or go underground or underwater to stay warm. One page talks about celebrating holidays with lights and decorations. The photos show a lit menorah, an outdoor deciduous tree covered in huge Christmas bulbs, a girl next to a Chinese dragon head, a boy with lit luminarias, and some fireworks. The final spread shows signs of the season’s shift to spring. Rotner’s photos, as always, are a big draw. The children are a marvelous mix of cultures and races, and all show their clear delight with winter.
A solid addition to Rotner’s seasonal series. Bring on summer. (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-8234-3976-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Holiday House
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
A gleeful game for budding naturalists.
Artfully cropped animal portraits challenge viewers to guess which end they’re seeing.
In what will be a crowd-pleasing and inevitably raucous guessing game, a series of close-up stock photos invite children to call out one of the titular alternatives. A page turn reveals answers and basic facts about each creature backed up by more of the latter in a closing map and table. Some of the posers, like the tail of an okapi or the nose on a proboscis monkey, are easy enough to guess—but the moist nose on a star-nosed mole really does look like an anus, and the false “eyes” on the hind ends of a Cuyaba dwarf frog and a Promethea moth caterpillar will fool many. Better yet, Lavelle saves a kicker for the finale with a glimpse of a small parasitical pearlfish peeking out of a sea cucumber’s rear so that the answer is actually face and butt. “Animal identification can be tricky!” she concludes, noting that many of the features here function as defenses against attack: “In the animal world, sometimes your butt will save your face and your face just might save your butt!” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gleeful game for budding naturalists. (author’s note) (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: July 11, 2023
ISBN: 9781728271170
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks eXplore
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2023
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