An inspiring story of perseverance.
Grammy Award–winning artist Diaz’s love letter to music.
“Treasure in the trash!” Canta, a Latine child who each Saturday stares longingly at the instruments on display at the guitar store, is thrilled to find a guitar that someone has thrown out. With Mamá’s encouragement (“¡Sí, se puede! / Where there’s a will, there’s a way!”), Canta seeks help from Fernanda at the repair shop. Soon, the guitar is whole again. Now all that’s left is learning to play it. Excited for lessons with Señora Clemente, Canta runs down the street, but another friend offers help before her class. Lupita gives the guitar a candy paint gleam so the guitar will be a real dream! Now Canta is finally ready for school. Some kids try to make fun of Canta, but Señora Clemente tells her to “Tune those doubts out!” So Canta listens to her heart, her corazón, and loudly sings her song, her canción! With unitalicized Spanish and English intertwined, the rhymes are appropriately melodic, and the art is vibrant, full of warm tones and round-faced characters full of expression. It’s a combination that works: a heartfelt story of a neighborhood coming together to help a little girl’s dream come true and engaging illustrations that deliver. Most characters present Latine, with skin in varying shades of brown; Señora Clemente is cued as Afro-Latine. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
An inspiring story of perseverance. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780063254152
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Jan. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2023
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
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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