A gentle, soothing, timely story to inspire compassion and kindness.
An Italian import, translated by McCalmont, explores nature’s beneficence.
The highly understated but impactful opening spread shows a little seed—just a black teardrop shape in vast white space—on the recto, while the text on the verso reads “once / there was / a tiny seed. / So small in the / great, big world, / it felt lost and / lonely.” Readers will undoubtedly be curious to discover the fate of this vulnerable little pip. Never fear: The generous Earth provides it with soil; the rain waters it; the sun shines on it. As they do so, they each reassure the seed: “Don’t be afraid. I’ll take care of you.” The seed grows into an apple tree that invites a “lost and lonely” bird to nest in its branches. The seasons go by, and soon there is just one apple left on the tree. When it falls to the ground and splits open, its seeds are “cared for by the Earth, the Sky, and the Water,” except for one stray seed, which is swept onto barren rocks. Will it be saved? This cyclical story is gentle—no real dramatic twists—and serves as a timely reminder of the importance of caring for the vulnerable and less fortunate. With each narrative development, the refrain “I’ll take care of you” is repeated. The acrylic paint and collage illustrations—all double-page spreads full of saturated primary colors—are uplifting with motifs that underscore the interconnectedness of nature. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A gentle, soothing, timely story to inspire compassion and kindness. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: April 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-73760-323-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Blue Dot Kids Press
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2022
Animated and educational.
A hare and a ground squirrel banter about the differences between related animals that are often confused for one another.
Jack is “no Flopsy, Mopsy, or Cottontail,” but a “H-A-R-E, hare!” Like sheep and goats, or turtles and tortoises, rabbits and hares may look similar, but hares are bigger, their fur changes color in the winter, and they are born with their eyes wide open. As the ground squirrel (not to be mistaken for a chipmunk (even though Jack cheekily calls it “Chippie”) and Jack engage in playful discussion about animals, a sneaky coyote prowls after them through the Sonoran Desert. This picture book conveys the full narrative in spirited, speech-bubbled dialogue set on expressive illustrations of talking animals. Dark outlines around the characters make their shapes pop against the softly blended colors of the desert backgrounds. Snappy back-and-forth paired with repetition and occasional rhyme enhances the story’s appeal as a read-aloud. As the story progresses, the colors of the sky shift from dawn to dusk, providing subtle, visual bookends for the narrative. One page of backmatter offers a quick guide to eight easily confused pairs, and a second turns a subsequent exploration of the book into a seek-and-find of 15 creatures (and one dessert) hidden in the desert. Unfortunately, while most of the creatures from the seek-and-find appear in poses that match the illustrations in the challenge, not all of them are consistently represented. (This book was reviewed digitally with 7-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at 53.3% of actual size.)
Animated and educational. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-358-12506-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
If Black Lives Matter, they deserve more specificity than this.
A lushly illustrated picture book with a troubling message.
Little Lala walks with her father after his successful day of fishing. When Mama calls her home for bed, a host of “good night”s delays her: to the bird, the monkey, and even the rock. As Lala wanders through her village in the darkening twilight, readers appreciate its expansive beauty and Lala’s simple joys. Although it’s been artfully written and richly illustrated by an award-winning author of many multicultural stories, this book has problems that overshadow its beauty. “African veld” sets the story in southern Africa, but its vague locale encourages Americans to think that distinctions among African countries don’t matter. Lala wears braids or locks that stick straight up, recalling the 19th-century pickaninny, and her inconsistent skin color ranges from deep ebony like her father’s to light brown. Shadows may cause some of these differences, but if it weren’t for her identifiable hair, readers might wonder if the same child wanders from page to page. Perhaps most striking of all is Lala’s bedtime story: not an African tale but an American classic. While this might evoke nostalgia in some readers, it also suggests that southern Africa has no comparably great bedtime books for Lala, perhaps in part because American children’s literature dominates the world market.
If Black Lives Matter, they deserve more specificity than this. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 14, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-399-17384-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2016
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