A joyful story of one child’s can-do spirit and tasty endings.
A young girl of Pakistani descent whips up a traditional treat with a twist.
Noor is excited for her friends to visit, but she can’t decide what to serve them. Her father offers to order pizza, but Noor wants to make grandmother Dadijaan’s special potato and pea samosas. Her excitement turns to disappointment when she realizes she doesn’t have the recipe or the right ingredients—and it’s too early to call Dadijaan, who lives in Pakistan. Her father advises her to make do with what she has, and her pet parrot pipes up with an encouraging Urdu phrase that Noor’s grandmother often says: “Sab theek hai. Sab theek hoga!” (“Everything’s great. Everything’s going to be okay!”) Noor decides to make samosas with unique fillings. Soon, father and daughter are chopping, peeling, and grinding away. When it’s time to fill the samosa wraps, however, Noor’s attempts are less than successful. But she refuses to give up, and inspiration strikes when she recalls that her grandmother wraps the samosas the same way she ties her scarf into a turban—“TWIST, FLIP, FOLD, AND…TUCK!” Her friends bite into little triangles of delicious and unexpected flavors of apple-cinnamon, cheesy pepperoni, and honey-pistachio samosas. Though the word awe-samosas is a bit overused, Noor’s plucky problem-solving and her encouraging cheerleaders help buoy the book. Illustrations that vary between close-ups and lively alternating perspectives evoke a cozy, bustling kitchen.
A joyful story of one child’s can-do spirit and tasty endings. (samosa recipe, Urdu glossary) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 26, 2024
ISBN: 9780063257276
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2024
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads.
Emma deals with jitters before playing the guitar in the school talent show.
Pop musician Kevin Jonas and his wife, Danielle, put performance at the center of their picture-book debut. When Emma is intimidated by her very talented friends, the encouragement of her younger sister, Bella, and the support of her family help her to shine her own light. The story is straightforward and the moral familiar: Draw strength from your family and within to overcome your fears. Employing the performance-anxiety trope that’s been written many times over, the book plods along predictably—there’s nothing really new or surprising here. Dawson’s full-color digital illustrations center a White-presenting family along with Emma’s three friends of color: Jamila has tanned skin and wears a hijab; Wendy has dark brown skin and Afro puffs; and Luis has medium brown skin. Emma’s expressive eyes and face are the real draw of the artwork—from worry to embarrassment to joy, it’s clear what she’s feeling. A standout double-page spread depicts Emma’s talent show performance, with a rainbow swirl of music erupting from an amp and Emma rocking a glam outfit and electric guitar. Overall, the book reads pretty plainly, buoyed largely by the artwork. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Nice enough but not worth repeat reads. (Picture book. 4-6)Pub Date: March 29, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-35207-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers.
Echoing the meter of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” Ward uses catchy original rhymes to describe the variety of nests birds create.
Each sweet stanza is complemented by a factual, engaging description of the nesting habits of each bird. Some of the notes are intriguing, such as the fact that the hummingbird uses flexible spider web to construct its cup-shaped nest so the nest will stretch as the chicks grow. An especially endearing nesting behavior is that of the emperor penguin, who, with unbelievable patience, incubates the egg between his tummy and his feet for up to 60 days. The author clearly feels a mission to impart her extensive knowledge of birds and bird behavior to the very young, and she’s found an appealing and attractive way to accomplish this. The simple rhymes on the left page of each spread, written from the young bird’s perspective, will appeal to younger children, and the notes on the right-hand page of each spread provide more complex factual information that will help parents answer further questions and satisfy the curiosity of older children. Jenkins’ accomplished collage illustrations of common bird species—woodpecker, hummingbird, cowbird, emperor penguin, eagle, owl, wren—as well as exotics, such as flamingoes and hornbills, are characteristically naturalistic and accurate in detail.
A good bet for the youngest bird-watchers. (author’s note, further resources) (Informational picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-2116-5
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
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