As inclusive, adorable puppet playthings, this book and its companions succeed—but not so much on literary merit.
This interactive board book features a finger-puppet bunny enjoying a meal at the table.
Even bunnies have to learn how to eat, as evidenced by the mess made at the end of the meal in this board book. The story encourages a conversational tone, with the main character—a bespectacled white child with features characteristic of Down syndrome—talking to the bunny while having a meal. The child’s dialogue appears on the left with the stuffed animal’s responses on the right. The finger-puppet bunny head is absolutely adorable: well done in three dimensions, complete with ears that stand up and a pink nose. The illustrations themselves are appropriately basic, all taking place at the same table with little variation in the child’s facial expressions and only minor changes to food and drink from page to page. The uncredited rhyming text is lackluster: child: “Carrot, Bunny? / All for you!” Bunny: “Crunch, crunch, crunch! / It’s good to chew!” The three other books in the series (Dive In, Ducky!, Play Time, Puppy!, and Sleep Tight, Teddy!) feature the same structure, successes, and struggles. It’s refreshing to see such inclusive treatment of disability. Teddy features a black-presenting child with a cochlear implant, and Puppy’s Asian-presenting protagonist wears a safety helmet, suggesting seizures. (Ducky’s protagonist presents white and has no evident disability.) The finger puppets remain adorable across the series.
As inclusive, adorable puppet playthings, this book and its companions succeed—but not so much on literary merit. (Board book. 6 mos.-2)Pub Date: May 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-78628-207-1
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Child's Play
Review Posted Online: April 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
An accessible entrance into the world of social-emotional skills.
What do you do when the world turns upside down?
Freckled redhead Tilda is a happy only child with a rollicking personality. With lots of books and toys and a multiracial group of friends, life is perfect as far as she’s concerned…until her world undergoes a troubling change (a subtle hint in the illustrations suggests that Tilda’s parents have divorced). Suddenly, nothing feels right, everything seems hard, and she doesn’t want to play with her friends. To reflect this emotional disorientation, the artwork shows Tilda in spatially distorted settings, complete with upside-down objects. It’s not until she sees an upturned ladybug struggle persistently before getting back on its feet (despite Tilda’s desire to help, the ladybug needs to help itself) that Tilda gains the courage to start taking baby steps in order to cope with her new reality. There are still challenges, and she needs to persevere, but eventually, she regains her zest for life and reconnects with her friends. Despite this, the ending avoids an easy happily-ever-after, which feels just right for the subject matter. Though a trifle didactic, the story sends an important message about the roles of self-efficacy and persistence when it comes to overcoming challenges and building resilience. Percival’s digital illustrations use transitions from grayscale to color to create symbolic meaning and have psychological depth, deftly capturing a child’s experience of trauma.
An accessible entrance into the world of social-emotional skills. (author's note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 1, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5476-0822-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Dec. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2022
A memorable story of kindness, courage and wonder.
After being home-schooled for years, Auggie Pullman is about to start fifth grade, but he’s worried: How will he fit into middle school life when he looks so different from everyone else?
Auggie has had 27 surgeries to correct facial anomalies he was born with, but he still has a face that has earned him such cruel nicknames as Freak, Freddy Krueger, Gross-out and Lizard face. Though “his features look like they’ve been melted, like the drippings on a candle” and he’s used to people averting their eyes when they see him, he’s an engaging boy who feels pretty ordinary inside. He’s smart, funny, kind and brave, but his father says that having Auggie attend Beecher Prep would be like sending “a lamb to the slaughter.” Palacio divides the novel into eight parts, interspersing Auggie’s first-person narrative with the voices of family members and classmates, wisely expanding the story beyond Auggie’s viewpoint and demonstrating that Auggie’s arrival at school doesn’t test only him, it affects everyone in the community. Auggie may be finding his place in the world, but that world must find a way to make room for him, too.
A memorable story of kindness, courage and wonder. (Fiction. 8-14)Pub Date: Feb. 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-375-86902-0
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011
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