A gem that whets the appetite to learn more about a city where art is as alive as the people who live there.
An alphabetic journey through Harlem, past and present.
Beginning with “A is for Apollo Theater” and ending with “Z is for Zora Neale Hurston,” this historically rich picture book highlights the significant people, places, works of art, memorable publications, and more that have long made Harlem a hub of Black culture. Some letters focus on well-known institutions, such as the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, and the Harlem Globetrotters. Others shed light on lesser-known individuals like Mabel Fairbanks and Sharon Cohen, who created a pathway for Black youth to learn figure skating, and Impact Farm, an organization that has turned abandoned lots into thriving urban gardens. Harrison’s stunning, colorful, highly textured illustrations complement and expand upon Johnson’s textual snapshots, which offer just enough detail to encourage children to deepen their knowledge of Harlem. Johnson also gives a nod to other children’s picture-book creators by spotlighting Bryan Collier, whose award-winning picture book Uptown celebrates Harlem. This is a beautiful and welcome celebration of Black joy. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gem that whets the appetite to learn more about a city where art is as alive as the people who live there. (author's note) (Picture book. 5-10)Pub Date: July 19, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-32237-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: April 26, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2022
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere.
This book is buzzing with trivia.
Follow a swarm of bees as they leave a beekeeper’s apiary in search of a new home. As the scout bees traverse the fields, readers are provided with a potpourri of facts and statements about bees. The information is scattered—much like the scout bees—and as a result, both the nominal plot and informational content are tissue-thin. There are some interesting facts throughout the book, but many pieces of trivia are too, well trivial, to prove useful. For example, as the bees travel, readers learn that “onion flowers are round and fluffy” and “fennel is a plant that is used in cooking.” Other facts are oversimplified and as a result are not accurate. For example, monofloral honey is defined as “made by bees who visit just one kind of flower” with no acknowledgment of the fact that bees may range widely, and swarm activity is described as a springtime event, when it can also occur in summer and early fall. The information in the book, such as species identification and measurement units, is directed toward British readers. The flat, thin-lined artwork does little to enhance the story, but an “I spy” game challenging readers to find a specific bee throughout is amusing.
Friends of these pollinators will be best served elsewhere. (Informational picture book. 8-10)Pub Date: May 18, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-500-65265-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Another playful imagination-stretcher.
Markle invites children to picture themselves living in the homes of 11 wild animals.
As in previous entries in the series, McWilliam’s illustrations of a diverse cast of young people fancifully imitating wild creatures are paired with close-up photos of each animal in a like natural setting. The left side of one spread includes a photo of a black bear nestling in a cozy winter den, while the right side features an image of a human one cuddled up with a bear. On another spread, opposite a photo of honeybees tending to newly hatched offspring, a human “larva” lounges at ease in a honeycomb cell, game controller in hand, as insect attendants dish up goodies. A child with an eye patch reclines on an orb weaver spider’s web, while another wearing a head scarf constructs a castle in a subterranean chamber with help from mound-building termites. Markle adds simple remarks about each type of den, nest, or burrow and basic facts about its typical residents, then closes with a reassuring reminder to readers that they don’t have to live as animals do, because they will “always live where people live.” A select gallery of traditional homes, from igloo and yurt to mudhif, follows a final view of the young cast waving from a variety of differently styled windows.
Another playful imagination-stretcher. (Informational picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9781339049052
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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