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FIRST DAY OF GROOT!

Name: FIRST DAY OF GROOT!
Author: Brendan Deneen
ISBN: 978-1-368-00069-7

by Brendan Deneen ; illustrated by Cale Atkinson ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 2, 2019

A back-to-school book solely for Marvel fans.

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Groot and Marvel fans have a new picture book to add to their first-day-of-school shelves.

Rhyming text leads readers through Groot’s first day of school. He wakes up at home in his flowerpot, eats breakfast (“It gives you the strength / to run and play,” though it appears to be sugary cereal), and boards the spaceship bus with Rocket Raccoon. The tongue-in-cheek lessons the pair learn are similar to those readers will experience in their own classrooms (in content though not in the look of the school), albeit injected with a heavy dose of Marvel violence and bad-guy vanquishing. Sharing, counting, and spelling are all learned before lunch, when friends gather. Teamwork is tackled afterward, when Thanos attacks, and the last lesson involves music. It’s a great day for Groot, and for readers who are fans, this will certainly hit the spot, though the draw will surely be the bright, cinematic illustrations that are full of details to delight those familiar with the Marvel Universe; much is lost for those not in the know, and the text is lackluster.

A back-to-school book solely for Marvel fans. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: July 2, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-368-00069-7

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
SNOW DAY FOR GROOT!
by Brendan Deneen ; illustrated by Cale Atkinson

- BOOK REVIEW
NIGHT NIGHT, GROOT
by Brendan Deneen ; illustrated by Cale Atkinson

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THE WORLD NEEDS THE WONDER YOU SEE

by Joanna Gaines ; illustrated by Julianna Swaney ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 28, 2025

Handy advice for perpetually inquisitive children.

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Interior decorator and TV personality Gaines invites readers to open their eyes and exercise their imaginations.

There’s a world to be explored out there—and only children can really take part. What does “looking for wonder” entail? Slowing down and looking up, around, and everywhere. At the outset, a group of eager, racially diverse young friends—including one who uses a wheelchair—are fully prepared for a grand adventure. They offer tips about how and where to look: Why, there’s a “grand parade” of marching ants! And, these kids add, perspective is key. A rainy day might signal gloom to some, but to those filled with wonder, showers bring “magic puddles for play”; a forest is “an enchanted world,” the ocean conceals “a spectacular city,” and the night sky boasts “extraordinary sights.” The takeaway: “Wonder is never in short supply.” It’s a robust, empowering message, as is the exhortation to “keep your mind open, and let curiosity guide the way.” Youngsters are also advised to share their discoveries. The upbeat narrative is delivered in clunky verse, but the colorful cartoonish illustrations brimming with activity and good cheer (including some adorable anthropomorphized animals in the backgrounds) make up for the textual lapses and should motivate readers to embark on their own “wonder explorations.”

Handy advice for perpetually inquisitive children. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Jan. 28, 2025

ISBN: 9781400247417

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Tommy Nelson

Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORLD NEEDS WHO YOU WERE MADE TO BE
by Joanna Gaines ; illustrated by Julianna Swaney

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)