A meditative homage to the creative universe inside a child’s mind—and pockets.
Throughout the year, a youngster explores all the things one can do with a pocketful of nature.
Anyone who washes a child’s clothes learns an important lesson—check the pockets first. But where an adult might find a jumble of rocks and other detritus, a child sees a world of comfort and possibility. Told in the second person with a repeating structure, the story follows a little one who gathers up treasures from nature and puts them to imaginative use. In the winter, a pocketful of rocks becomes “chairs for fairies to rest on.” Spring flower petals are transformed into perfume. Summer brings shells that sound like the ocean, and fall acorns make “perfect hats for the fairies now that the weather is getting cool.” At the end of each season, the child transfers the treasures into a jar to make room for the next discoveries. When the year ends, the young protagonist gifts them to the rest of the family. With an empty jar and a pocketful of rocks, the cycle starts again. A sour note in an otherwise sweet story is the dismissiveness of the protagonist’s family. With each new pocketful, Mom, Dad, and the child’s sister look up from their own activities to discourage the young narrator; petals will wilt, and collecting shells brings in sand. Still, the solitary child finds a way to make space for creativity. Soft, colorful illustrations provide quiet beauty. Characters are brown-skinned.
A meditative homage to the creative universe inside a child’s mind—and pockets. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Jan. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9780593428542
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.
In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.
Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”
A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780063387843
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A sweet notion that falls flat.
A hit song reimagined as a book about parental love.
Featured in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn—Part 1, Perri’s “A Thousand Years” deals with the speaker’s fear of romantic love. In picture-book form, it explores a parent’s unwavering love for a child, who grows from an infant into a toddler over the course of the narrative. The caregiver expresses awe when the youngster learns to stand and fear that the child might fall while beginning to walk. “I have spent every day waiting for you,” the parent says. “Darling, don’t be afraid.” What the child might fear isn’t clear from the joyful balloon- and rainbow-filled illustrations. The story borders on cloying, and words that might work when sung and accompanied by music don’t sound fresh on the page: “Time goes by. / You grow ever stronger as you fly.” The refrain, however, is a lovely sentiment: “I have loved you for a thousand years. / I’ll love you for a thousand more.” Perri’s legion of fans may flock to this version, illustrated by Ruiz with sparkling stars, bubbles, and big-eyed toddlers, but it doesn’t hold together as a narrative or an ode, as it’s billed, and it’s a long way from the original song. The child is tan-skinned, the parent is lighter-skinned, and other characters are diverse.
A sweet notion that falls flat. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: April 1, 2025
ISBN: 9780593622599
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
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