MING GOES TO SCHOOL

Name: MING GOES TO SCHOOL
Author: Deirdre Sullivan
ISBN: 978-1-5107-0050-5

by Deirdre Sullivan ; illustrated by Maja Löfdahl ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 5, 2016

Featuring peeks at common classroom sights and activities, this empathetic tale could also be a discussion starter about...

bookshelf

The first year of school for Ming is full of opposites and fun, but some things take time.

School is “where she learns to say hello… // and good-bye.” Flanked by her father, Ming surveys the friendly faces of her teacher and classmates; a turn of the page reveals Ming plastered to the window as her father’s silhouette recedes. She meets new friends and introduces old ones: her well-loved stuffed animal at show and tell. There are “pinkie-lifting tea parties” and walking the plank. But though Ming conquers all these new things, she’s just not ready for the big red slide: “growing up takes time.” As the year proceeds, the seasons turn in Löfdahl’s watercolor illustrations, which are soft, rounded, and slightly fuzzy. White backgrounds keep the focus on the characters and allow the brief text space of its own. Ming’s name implies Asian heritage. She has round eyes like all the other children, her skin is medium-toned, and she sports Pippi Longstocking braids in her dark hair. Her father appears white, and her classmates are diverse. School is “where all things… // are worth waiting for." The final, oval illustration pictures a smiling, confident Ming posed atop the slide in spring.

Featuring peeks at common classroom sights and activities, this empathetic tale could also be a discussion starter about growth and readiness. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: July 5, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-5107-0050-5

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Sky Pony Press

Review Posted Online: May 13, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
MING AND HER POPPY
by Deirdre Sullivan ; illustrated by Maja Löfdahl

bookshelf

LITTLE RED SLEIGH

by Erin Guendelsberger ; illustrated by Elizaveta Tretyakova ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2020

Sadly, the storytelling runs aground.

bookshelf

A little red sleigh has big Christmas dreams.

Although the detailed, full-color art doesn’t anthropomorphize the protagonist (which readers will likely identify as a sled and not a sleigh), a close third-person text affords the object thoughts and feelings while assigning feminine pronouns. “She longed to become Santa’s big red sleigh,” reads an early line establishing the sleigh’s motivation to leave her Christmas-shop home for the North Pole. Other toys discourage her, but she perseveres despite creeping self-doubt. A train and truck help the sleigh along, and when she wishes she were big, fast, and powerful like them, they offer encouragement and counsel patience. When a storm descends after the sleigh strikes out on her own, an unnamed girl playing in the snow brings her to a group of children who all take turns riding the sleigh down a hill. When the girl brings her home, the sleigh is crestfallen she didn’t reach the North Pole. A convoluted happily-ever-after ending shows a note from Santa that thanks the sleigh for giving children joy and invites her to the North Pole next year. “At last she understood what she was meant to do. She would build her life up spreading joy, one child at a time.” Will she leave the girl’s house to be gifted to other children? Will she stay and somehow also reach ever more children? Readers will be left wondering. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-18-inch double-page spreads viewed at 31.8% of actual size.)

Sadly, the storytelling runs aground. (Picture book. 3-6)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-72822-355-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland

Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020

Categories:

CHILDREN'S HOLIDAYS & CELEBRATIONS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE ORANGE PUMPKIN
by Erin Guendelsberger ; illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE PURPLE TRACTOR
by Erin Guendelsberger ; illustrated by Annelouise Mahoney

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE YELLOW BUS
by Erin Guendelsberger ; illustrated by Suzie Mason

bookshelf

IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

bookshelf

A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)