A poignant yet accessible entry into Ukraine’s ongoing suffering—and survival.
Drawing inspiration from the experiences of her grandparents, Maslo offers a window into the Ukrainian spirit.
It’s 1932, and Communists are going door to door collecting extra taxes and grain. Zlata’s mama starts hiding food, and Papa buries bags of grain. On Zlata’s eighth birthday, her best friend and neighbor, Yeva, and Yeva’s parents come over to celebrate. Zlata wears the blouse her mother made with colors traditionally used in Ukrainian embroidery: red for love, black for sadness. The conversation between the girls reveals their parents’ opposing political views. When Yeva’s father informs on Zlata’s family, their food and goods are confiscated, including the birthday blouse. Maslo effectively uses dialogue, a first-person narrative with plenty of helpful historical context, and a controlled palette to create a meaningful, engaging tale. Golden wheat is a recurring image, at first suggesting sustenance, then forbidden food. With spring, wheat symbolizes hope. A stark white page—with a corner of shadow—reveals that Zlata’s papa has been taken. Brown sets the mood for hunger. The girls mend their broken relationship when Yeva explains that her father was taken, too, but that he had rescued the blouse. Reflecting on the importance of holding on to what “made us Ukrainian—our language, our beliefs, our traditions,” the protagonist notes: “Beauty made life bearable.”
A poignant yet accessible entry into Ukraine’s ongoing suffering—and survival. (author’s note, bibliography) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Jan. 23, 2024
ISBN: 9780374391218
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Kids will enjoy the opportunity to “mews” on the doings of a presidential pet.
First Lady Biden and Capucilli, author of the Biscuit series, explain how Willow the cat came to reside at the White House.
Willow lives contentedly in a barn. One day, she’s curious when cars approach and people gather to hear a blond woman speak. Willow draws closer, then is delighted as the woman lifts her up and hugs her. That evening, light-skinned Farmer Rick tells Willow she made “quite an impression”: The visitor has invited Willow to live with her. A car arrives to drive Willow away to the White House, her new home in Washington, D.C. There, she’s welcomed by the first lady—the same woman who tenderly held her at the farm. Willow meets the president and explores her new home, filled with elegantly furnished rooms, grand staircases, and historic portraits. Plus, there’s a toy-filled basket! Best of all, there are wonderful people who work in and visit this beautiful house who show Willow kindness and affection. Willow’s favorite resting spot is at the president’s side in the Oval Office, though she also enjoys watching the first lady read to children on the lawn. Animal lovers will especially appreciate this sweet, cat’s-eye view of the White House, which helps humanize the first family by depicting them as ordinary feline fanciers. The loose ink, acrylic, and paint illustrations are cheerful and cozy. Background characters are racially diverse.
Kids will enjoy the opportunity to “mews” on the doings of a presidential pet. (author’s note from Biden, photos) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781665952057
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted...
Reinvention is the name of the game for two blobs of clay.
A blue-eyed gray blob and a brown-eyed brown blob sit side by side, unsure as to what’s going to happen next. The gray anticipates an adventure, while the brown appears apprehensive. A pair of hands descends, and soon, amid a flurry of squishing and prodding and poking and sculpting, a handsome gray wolf and a stately brown owl emerge. The hands disappear, leaving the friends to their own devices. The owl is pleased, but the wolf convinces it that the best is yet to come. An ear pulled here and an extra eye placed there, and before you can shake a carving stick, a spurt of frenetic self-exploration—expressed as a tangled black scribble—reveals a succession of smug hybrid beasts. After all, the opportunity to become a “pig-e-phant” doesn’t come around every day. But the sound of approaching footsteps panics the pair of Picassos. How are they going to “fix [them]selves” on time? Soon a hippopotamus and peacock are staring bug-eyed at a returning pair of astonished hands. The creative naiveté of the “clay mates” is perfectly captured by Petty’s feisty, spot-on dialogue: “This was your idea…and it was a BAD one.” Eldridge’s endearing sculpted images are photographed against the stark white background of an artist’s work table to great effect.
The dynamic interaction between the characters invites readers to take risks, push boundaries, and have a little unscripted fun of their own . (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: June 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-316-30311-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2017
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