Thoroughly opaque.
Best friends forever?
The unnamed first-person narrator loves best friend Jamal, and Jamal loves the narrator, too. It’s difficult to track which child is which in the busy illustrations, and physical attributes that might help with this task are inconsistent from spread to spread. For the most part, however, one child (perhaps the speaker, given how text is placed) is usually a purple hue with orange squiggles for hair while the other appears orange with purple squiggles for hair. What is clear is that the pals like the same things, and they adore each other. They’re sad at the school day’s end because they must say goodbye to each other. The final page reads: “Twins should always stick together.” This concluding spread shows the children, their arms around each other, with the most naturalistic appearance they’ve ever had. One child has dark brown skin and curly, perhaps afro-textured hair while the other has light brown skin, freckles, and similarly curly hair. It’s hard to know what readers will make of this conclusion. Are Jamal and the narrator not, in fact, to be parted at the end of the day? Are they children of separated parents in a custody arrangement that separates them as well? Is “twins” to be read metaphorically? Even fairly sophisticated child readers will find themselves wondering just what’s going on, and the potential racial difference implied in the picture only further complicates the readings they may struggle to apply.
Thoroughly opaque. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: April 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77147-366-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Owlkids Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020
Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind.
The cool beans again step up to do a timorous fellow legume a fava…this time at the pool.
Will a rash decision to tackle the multistory super-slide lead to another embarrassing watery fail for our shy protagonist? Nope, for up the stairs right behind comes a trio of cool beans, each a different type and color, all clad in nothing but dark shades. They make an offer: “It’s not as scary if you go with friends!” As the knobby nerd explains once the thrilling ride down is done, “They all realized that I just needed some encouragement and support.” Just to make sure that both cool and uncool readers get the message, the narrator lets us know that “there are plenty of kind folks who have my back. They’re always there when I need them.” The beany bonhomie doesn’t end at the bottom of the slide, with all gliding down to the shallow end of the pool (“3 INCHES. NO DIVING”) for a splashy finale. This latest early reader starring characters from John and Oswald’s immensely popular Food Group series will be a hit with fans. Fun accessories, such as a bean who rocks pink cat-eye frames, add some pizzazz to the chromatically and somatotypically varied cast.
Another quirky take on the series theme that it’s cool to be kind. (Easy reader. 5-7)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780063329560
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2024
Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back.
With such short arms, how can Tiny T. Rex give a sad friend a hug?
Fleck goes for cute in the simple, minimally detailed illustrations, drawing the diminutive theropod with a chubby turquoise body and little nubs for limbs under a massive, squared-off head. Impelled by the sight of stegosaurian buddy Pointy looking glum, little Tiny sets out to attempt the seemingly impossible, a comforting hug. Having made the rounds seeking advice—the dino’s pea-green dad recommends math; purple, New Age aunt offers cucumber juice (“That is disgusting”); red mom tells him that it’s OK not to be able to hug (“You are tiny, but your heart is big!”), and blue and yellow older sibs suggest practice—Tiny takes up the last as the most immediately useful notion. Unfortunately, the “tree” the little reptile tries to hug turns out to be a pterodactyl’s leg. “Now I am falling,” Tiny notes in the consistently self-referential narrative. “I should not have let go.” Fortunately, Tiny lands on Pointy’s head, and the proclamation that though Rexes’ hugs may be tiny, “I will do my very best because you are my very best friend” proves just the mood-lightening ticket. “Thank you, Tiny. That was the biggest hug ever.” Young audiences always find the “clueless grown-ups” trope a knee-slapper, the overall tone never turns preachy, and Tiny’s instinctive kindness definitely puts him at (gentle) odds with the dinky dino star of Bob Shea’s Dinosaur Vs. series.
Wins for compassion and for the refusal to let physical limitations hold one back. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: March 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7033-6
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 11, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2018
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