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SHY ROBIN AND THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Name: SHY ROBIN AND THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
Author: Jaime Kim
ISBN: 978-1-5362-0929-7

by Jaime Kim ; illustrated by Jaime Kim ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 13, 2023

Encouragement for those who are exuberant, loud, and full of energy…but only at home.

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An uncertain hippo’s first day at school.

Robin is a “big, brave animal”—specifically, a yellow hippo with bangs. While Robin is a boisterous force of nature at home, out in the “big, busy world,” Robin feels shy. On the first day of school, Mom gives Robin a purple headband for good luck, but the hippo still feels overwhelmed in their new classroom. But Robin notices a young otter named Marco who’s also struggling with anxiety. Finding a super-cool purple cape in the costume box gives Robin the courage to approach Marco, but the loss of their new headband makes Robin hide again. Luckily, Marco is there to offer Robin one of his lucky purple bracelets and to help find the headband, and together they learn to be the bravest, shyest animals in class. Lovingly rendered chalky illustrations bring to life this tale in a well-paced balance of spot art and spreads, showing a variety of soft, round anthropomorphized animals going about their days around Robin. Shy human children—especially those who feel more outgoing in a familiar environment—will be reassured that they will most certainly not be the only ones nervous about their first day of school. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Encouragement for those who are exuberant, loud, and full of energy…but only at home. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: June 13, 2023

ISBN: 978-1-5362-0929-7

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: March 28, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
BIRTHDAY SOUP
by Grace Seo Chang ; illustrated by Jaime Kim

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THE GOBLIN TWINS
by Frances Cha ; illustrated by Jaime Kim

- BOOK REVIEW
THE GOBLIN TWINS
by Frances Cha ; illustrated by Jaime Kim

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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)

Pub Date: June 21, 2016

ISBN: 978-0-06-234834-0

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: May 3, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2016

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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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.

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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)