Pitch-perfect writing, a charming protagonist, and relatable conflict—what more could readers ask for?
Trouble with an insensitive teacher threatens an enthusiastic 8-year-old’s love of school in this series starter.
Third grade looks rocky for Bibsy Cross. For the first time, she and her best friend, Natia, aren’t in the same class. And Bibsy’s new teacher, Mrs. Stumper, seems to sigh with irritation every time Bibsy raises her hand. Granted, Bibsy has a tendency to “go on” just “a stone too far,” as her teacher puts it. But Bibsy has a such a font of interesting information and a yen to share it! Mrs. Stumper indicates her displeasure by moving the paper apple bearing Bibsy’s name to the bottom of the bulletin board. The teacher grows increasingly exasperated until the dreadful Wednesday when the apple isn’t just plucked, but hole-punched. On Friday, Bibsy will have to take her apple home to be signed by her parents. Garton’s prose is marked by whimsy, enchanting turns of phrase, and an intuitive understanding of how children perceive the world. Bibsy’s empathy (she worries for a classmate whose apple is often grounded) and her willingness to make the best of a bad situation (or to turn “sours” sweet, in Bibsy’s words) make her a winsome protagonist. Gracefully composed, two-color illustrations and line breaks make for even faster page-turning. Bibsy and Mrs. Stumper appear light-skinned in the art; Natia presents Black.
Pitch-perfect writing, a charming protagonist, and relatable conflict—what more could readers ask for? (Chapter book. 6-9)Pub Date: June 11, 2024
ISBN: 9780593644416
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2024
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PERSPECTIVES
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists.
How to raise money for a coveted poster: put your friends to work!
John, founder of the FUBU fashion line and a Shark Tank venture capitalist, offers a self-referential blueprint for financial success. Having only half of the $10 he needs for a Minka J poster, Daymond forks over $1 to buy a plain T-shirt, paints a picture of the pop star on it, sells it for $5, and uses all of his cash to buy nine more shirts. Then he recruits three friends to decorate them with his design and help sell them for an unspecified amount (from a conveniently free and empty street-fair booth) until they’re gone. The enterprising entrepreneur reimburses himself for the shirts and splits the remaining proceeds, which leaves him with enough for that poster as well as a “brand-new business book,” while his friends express other fiscal strategies: saving their share, spending it all on new art supplies, or donating part and buying a (math) book with the rest. (In a closing summation, the author also suggests investing in stocks, bonds, or cryptocurrency.) Though Miles cranks up the visual energy in her sparsely detailed illustrations by incorporating bright colors and lots of greenbacks, the actual advice feels a bit vague. Daymond is Black; most of the cast are people of color. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
It’s hard to argue with success, but guides that actually do the math will be more useful to budding capitalists. (Picture book. 7-9)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-593-56727-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode.
A long-running series reaches its closing chapters.
Having, as Kline notes in her warm valedictory acknowledgements, taken 30 years to get through second and third grade, Harry Spooger is overdue to move on—but not just into fourth grade, it turns out, as his family is moving to another town as soon as the school year ends. The news leaves his best friend, narrator “Dougo,” devastated…particularly as Harry doesn’t seem all that fussed about it. With series fans in mind, the author takes Harry through a sort of last-day-of-school farewell tour. From his desk he pulls a burned hot dog and other items that featured in past episodes, says goodbye to Song Lee and other classmates, and even (for the first time ever) leads Doug and readers into his house and memento-strewn room for further reminiscing. Of course, Harry isn’t as blasé about the move as he pretends, and eyes aren’t exactly dry when he departs. But hardly is he out of sight before Doug is meeting Mohammad, a new neighbor from Syria who (along with further diversifying a cast that began as mostly white but has become increasingly multiethnic over the years) will also be starting fourth grade at summer’s end, and planning a written account of his “horrible” buddy’s exploits. Finished illustrations not seen.
A fitting farewell, still funny, acute, and positive in its view of human nature even in its 37th episode. (Fiction. 7-9)Pub Date: Nov. 27, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-451-47963-1
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Sept. 16, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2018
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