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STOP AND SMELL THE COOKIES

Name: STOP AND SMELL THE COOKIES
Author: Gibson Frazier
ISBN: 978-0-525-51714-6

by Gibson Frazier ; illustrated by Micah Player ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 19, 2022

A humorous yet compassionate portrayal of the challenges of self-regulation.

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Dash wants to be good, and he knows right from wrong, but sometimes he can’t stop himself from misbehaving.

It’s been a rough couple of days for Dash. He loves karate class so much that he forgets to be quiet. He goes to Cate’s birthday party and accidentally blows out her candles before she can. Then at school, he blurts out the answer to a math activity while another student is still figuring it out. Each time he makes a poor choice, Dash can feel it coming: “Dash's chest felt warm and fuzzy. His toes danced. His fingers tickled the air.” Yet each time he sees how disappointed people are with him, he feels terrible. The bold cartoon outlines and expressive faces in Player’s illustrations pair perfectly with Frazier’s infectious text. Dash’s zest for life is palpable, as are both the tension that builds as he’s about to do something wrong and his contrition afterward. It’s clear that Dash is a good kid whose big feelings overwhelm him. Luckily, his supportive mom gives him a hug and teaches him a practical exercise for calming down his feelings, which he uses to great effect at school the next day. Dash and his parents have light skin and dark, curly hair, while his grandmother has gray hair and light skin. Other characters are racially diverse. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A humorous yet compassionate portrayal of the challenges of self-regulation. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: July 19, 2022

ISBN: 978-0-525-51714-6

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Putnam

Review Posted Online: April 12, 2022

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2022

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

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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)