A solid pick for the end of a momentous year (though not this Covid one).
Myriad books talk about the first day of school; few address the other end of that rite of passage: kindergarten graduation.
Combining scenes of the kindergarten students as their day progresses toward that fateful moment onstage with mentions of body parts in the rollicking verses, Heling and Hembrook really maximize the beat. “Got the graduation groove / in my kindergarten hands. / I’m putting on my cap, / making first-grade plans.” Though not all the verses scan so well, they give readers/listeners an idea of what graduation looks like, a look back at all the things they learned in kindergarten that will serve them well in first grade, and some of the things they might miss as well as a few they have to look forward to. “Got the first-grade jitters / in my kindergarten skin. / What if I don’t like it? / My insides start to spin.” Sonda’s bright, pastel-hued illustrations show a diverse class; many of their family members are in the audience and at the celebratory party afterward. Though body type is largely similar, there’s a wide range of skin tones. One child uses forearm crutches, another a wheelchair, and a third sports pink glasses. The kids’ exuberance can barely be contained on the pages. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9.8-by-16.6-inch double-page spreads viewed at 28.2% of actual size.)
A solid pick for the end of a momentous year (though not this Covid one). (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-4998-1065-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bee Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies.
Pigeon finds something better to drive than some old bus.
This time it’s Santa delivering the fateful titular words, and with a “Ho. Ho. Whoa!” the badgering begins: “C’mon! Where’s your holiday spirit? It would be a Christmas MIRACLE! Don’t you want to be part of a Christmas miracle…?” Pigeon is determined: “I can do Santa stuff!” Like wrapping gifts (though the accompanying illustration shows a rather untidy present), delivering them (the image of Pigeon attempting to get an oversize sack down a chimney will have little ones giggling), and eating plenty of cookies. Alas, as Willems’ legion of young fans will gleefully predict, not even Pigeon’s by-now well-honed persuasive powers (“I CAN BE JOLLY!”) will budge the sleigh’s large and stinky reindeer guardian. “BAH. Also humbug.” In the typically minimalist art, the frustrated feathered one sports a floppily expressive green and red elf hat for this seasonal addition to the series—but then discards it at the end for, uh oh, a pair of bunny ears. What could Pigeon have in mind now? “Egg delivery, anyone?”
A stocking stuffer par excellence, just right for dishing up with milk and cookies. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2023
ISBN: 9781454952770
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Union Square Kids
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2023
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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