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WHEN YOU HAVE TO WAIT

Name: WHEN YOU HAVE TO WAIT
Author: Melanie Conklin
ISBN: 9781250816542

by Melanie Conklin ; illustrated by Leah Hong ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 9, 2024

A relatable and beautifully rendered tale about the value of patience.

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A child finds contentment in the act of waiting.

Waiting is hard, whether you’re in line on a hot day to get into the pool, counting down the days until Mama returns from a weeklong trip, or yearning to grow tall enough to ride a big bike. For the protagonist, who’s cued Asian, “each second feels like forever when all you want is NOW.” But as time passes, the child discovers value in patience, including meeting a new friend while waiting at the pool. The child also enjoys some independence and develops an appreciation for the little things in life. In her debut picture book, Conklin uses simple, straightforward language from a second-person perspective to convey the struggle of waiting. Readers are bound to see themselves in the protagonist as the child flails in frustration, longs for a hug from a loved one, and worries about the future (“Will I ever be big enough?”). With soft textures and a gentle palette, Hong’s gouache and crayon illustrations perfectly echo the sentiment of the text and inspire a sense of calm mindfulness. The use of white space also encourages readers to pause and focus on small details. In a world fixated on instant gratification, Conklin and Hong make a persuasive case for the sense of joy and connection that can be found when we slow down.

A relatable and beautifully rendered tale about the value of patience. (Picture book. 4-8)

Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2024

ISBN: 9781250816542

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
CRUSHED
by Melanie Conklin

- BOOK REVIEW
A PERFECT MISTAKE
by Melanie Conklin

- BOOK REVIEW
EVERY MISSING PIECE
by Melanie Conklin

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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

Categories:

CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
ON THE FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Sarah Jennings

- BOOK REVIEW
FIVE LITTLE BUNNIES
by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Dan Yaccarino

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IT'S NOT EASY BEING A GHOST

From the It's Not Easy Being series

by Marilyn Sadler ; illustrated by Stephanie Laberis ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 13, 2024

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.

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A ghost longs to be scary, but none of the creepy personas she tries on fit.

Misty, a feline ghost with big green eyes and long whiskers, wants to be the frightening presence that her haunted house calls for, but sadly, she’s “too cute to be spooky.” She dons toilet paper to resemble a mummy, attempts to fly on a broom like a witch, and howls at the moon like a werewolf. Nothing works. She heads to a Halloween party dressed reluctantly as herself. When she arrives, her friends’ joyful screams reassure her that she’s great just as she is. Sadler’s message, though a familiar one, is delivered effectively in a charming, ghostly package. Misty truly is too precious to be frightening. Laberis depicts an endearingly spooky, all-animal cast—a frog witch, for instance, and a crocodilian mummy. Misty’s sidekick, a cheery little bat who lends support throughout, might be even more adorable than she is. Though Misty’s haunted house is filled with cobwebs and surrounded by jagged, leafless trees, the charming characters keep things from ever getting too frightening. The images will encourage lingering looks. Clearly, there’s plenty that makes Misty special just as she is—a takeaway that adults sharing the book with their little ones should be sure to drive home.

Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet. (Picture book. 4-6)