bookshelf

A BIG HELP

Name: A BIG HELP
Author: Daniel Fehr
ISBN: 978-84-17123-21-5

by Daniel Fehr ; illustrated by Benjamin Leroy ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 6, 2018

A big treat.

bookshelf

Tragedy. Badger has lost his teddy in this Spanish import.

Bear comes along and offers to help. Through the meadow, under bushes (“since things get lost easily in low and dark places”), over the lake, under the water, and up in the trees our two—make that three (Ladybug is also helping)—intrepid explorers leave no stone unturned. Bear asks the same question of everyone they meet: “Have you seen Badger’s teddy?” Alas, the answer is always a disheartening “No.” Bear is more distraught than Badger, who has clearly been having a great time. Apologizing for his apparent failure to help, Bear is totally befuddled when Badger asks, “Help me with what?” The happy Badger then promptly drags his “teddy” off for some more adventures. Swiss-German author Fehr writes in English, his simple, wryly funny, patterned text lending itself to group participation. The real winners here, however, are Leroy’s bold-outlined watercolor illustrations. From concerned, ever present Ladybug, never mentioned in the text, to the chuckle-inducing visual denouement, the Belgian artist’s humor carries the tale in grand style. Badger’s expression of joyful wonder as the world unfolds around him is a delight. Adding to readers’ enjoyment, characters from previous encounters wander obliviously into new scenes, creating an engaging sense of continuity. The simultaneous release of both the Spanish (via Luis Amavisca’s translation) and English editions is sure to be welcomed by classrooms and bilingual households alike.

A big treat. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2018

ISBN: 978-84-17123-21-5

Page Count: 36

Publisher: NubeOcho

Review Posted Online: Sept. 16, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
LET'S BUILD A DAM!
by Daniel Fehr ; illustrated by Mariachiara Di Giorgio ; translated by Daniel Fehr

- BOOK REVIEW
THERE'S A COW IN MY BED
by Daniel Fehr ; illustrated by Jorge Martín

bookshelf

CARPENTER'S HELPER

by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

bookshelf

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

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

bookshelf

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...

bookshelf

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)