Readers will likely want to gather their own natural rainbows, and caregivers should be ready with expressions of love.
A caregiver bear helps their cub get creative in order to hold on to the beauty of a rainbow.
When it starts to rain on an otherwise sunny day, Small Bear is disappointed. But Big Bear is quick to point out a rainbow: “It’s not all bad.” When it fades, the duo collect things that will make their own rainbow, Big Bear pointing out how each is like their love for Small Bear. The red of the poppies is “strong and deep,” just like Big Bear’s love. The crunch of orange and yellow leaves reminds Big Bear that their love for Small Bear “fills my whole heart with laughter.” And boring green grass? “It will grow forever,” just like Big Bear’s love. But when their rainbow is complete, Small Bear is devastated at the bedraggled collection that fails to capture the rainbow’s wonder. On a beautiful spread highlighting each color, Big Bear points out that the two have a rainbow of love in their hearts that they can take anywhere. Torres’ cartoon scenes are full of small details to delight—an inchworm on a stem, a squirrel parasailing with a fall leaf, woodland creatures watching and joining in the fun—but most of all the very apparent love the bears have for one another.
Readers will likely want to gather their own natural rainbows, and caregivers should be ready with expressions of love. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-68010-209-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
As ephemeral as a valentine.
Daywalt and Jeffers’ wandering crayons explore love.
Each double-page spread offers readers a vision of one of the anthropomorphic crayons on the left along with the statement “Love is [color].” The word love is represented by a small heart in the appropriate color. Opposite, childlike crayon drawings explain how that color represents love. So, readers learn, “love is green. / Because love is helpful.” The accompanying crayon drawing depicts two alligators, one holding a recycling bin and the other tossing a plastic cup into it, offering readers two ways of understanding green. Some statements are thought-provoking: “Love is white. / Because sometimes love is hard to see,” reaches beyond the immediate image of a cat’s yellow eyes, pink nose, and black mouth and whiskers, its white face and body indistinguishable from the paper it’s drawn on, to prompt real questions. “Love is brown. / Because sometimes love stinks,” on the other hand, depicted by a brown bear standing next to a brown, squiggly turd, may provoke giggles but is fundamentally a cheap laugh. Some of the color assignments have a distinctly arbitrary feel: Why is purple associated with the imagination and pink with silliness? Fans of The Day the Crayons Quit (2013) hoping for more clever, metaliterary fun will be disappointed by this rather syrupy read.
As ephemeral as a valentine. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Dec. 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-5247-9268-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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