As a representative of the “reading is awesome” genre, this offers a fairly witty alternative to the often drearily earnest...
This book’s title and cover, on which two kids tote heaps of books, will have librarians, teachers, and book mavens immediately reaching for it.
However, the title is a bit deceiving, as the book is not a how-to for decoding words; instead, it’s a paean to reading minus a plot. The device is a series of sentences beginning with the words “you can read…” followed by a list of various places. A nameless pale-skinned boy and brown-skinned girl demonstrate the many scenarios in which books can be read, proving you can read anywhere. Some of the locations are unremarkable, while others are fanciful: in the classroom, in the park, and under the covers will seem familiar, while in the desert, on the ocean floor, or in a rocket stretch the bounds of possibility. Some side-by-side pages depict a relationship, as when one child sits on the throne reading a book called The Time Taker while the other knocks on the locked door with legs crossed urgently, holding a copy of News Flush. Others add humor. Both a scenario in which a child reading while walking down the street results in a presumably poo-covered foot (“EEEW!”) and another that depicts the little boy in his tighty whities are calibrated to elicit giggles. The stylized digital artwork with hand lettering fills the pages, giving the illustrations a somewhat posterlike quality. The titles of what the kids are reading comment on the activities depicted. Oddly, a library is not listed as a place to read. This will pair nicely with other books about the pleasures of reading and can be used to invite a conversation with kids.
As a representative of the “reading is awesome” genre, this offers a fairly witty alternative to the often drearily earnest run of the mill. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4598-1324-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Orca
Review Posted Online: Dec. 20, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2017
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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