Solid rhymes and diverse representation freshen a familiar theme.
A pair of children imagine the possibilities of their futures in this inclusive picture book.
When a girl with brown skin and brown curls questions her purpose in life, she says, “Sometimes I sit and I think about me. / I let my imagination go wild, go free!” As the girl imagines her future, she thinks of colorful prospects, distant places, and jobs she might have. But she knows she’s not the only one with a purpose: Everyone, she says, has a future path to dream into being despite any obstacles. Dunsen-White’s strong rhyme scheme carries the book through familiar waters, lingering only briefly on possible careers and focusing more on the journey toward the future. Although the book isn’t explicitly faith-based, a few notes indicate the girl’s belief not only in herself, but in something larger than her; this reference makes it easy to adapt the text to suit the needs of spiritually inclined readers. Illustrator Rizzo’s whimsical cartoon images highlight the colorful imagination of the point-of-view character, and inclusive rhymes, such as “Although I am probably different from you, / You have a purpose, deep down inside too” are surrounded by illustrations of children of various abilities and skin tones. The final pages encourage further discussion with family members.
Solid rhymes and diverse representation freshen a familiar theme.Pub Date: Nov. 19, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-955154-08-6
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: April 19, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires.
Little Blue Truck feels, well, blue when he delivers valentine after valentine but receives nary a one.
His bed overflowing with cards, Blue sets out to deliver a yellow card with purple polka dots and a shiny purple heart to Hen, one with a shiny fuchsia heart to Pig, a big, shiny, red heart-shaped card to Horse, and so on. With each delivery there is an exchange of Beeps from Blue and the appropriate animal sounds from his friends, Blue’s Beeps always set in blue and the animal’s vocalization in a color that matches the card it receives. But as Blue heads home, his deliveries complete, his headlight eyes are sad and his front bumper droops ever so slightly. Blue is therefore surprised (but readers may not be) when he pulls into his garage to be greeted by all his friends with a shiny blue valentine just for him. In this, Blue’s seventh outing, it’s not just the sturdy protagonist that seems to be wilting. Schertle’s verse, usually reliable, stumbles more than once; stanzas such as “But Valentine’s Day / didn’t seem much fun / when he didn’t get cards / from anyone” will cause hitches during read-alouds. The illustrations, done by Joseph in the style of original series collaborator Jill McElmurry, are pleasant enough, but his compositions often feel stiff and forced.
Little Blue Truck keeps on truckin’—but not without some backfires. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Dec. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-358-27244-1
Page Count: 20
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Continuing to find inspiration in the work of Virginia Lee Burton, Munro Leaf and other illustrators of the past, Long (The Little Engine That Could, 2005) offers an aw-shucks friendship tale that features a small but hardworking tractor (“putt puff puttedy chuff”) with a Little Toot–style face and a big-eared young descendant of Ferdinand the bull who gets stuck in deep, gooey mud. After the big new yellow tractor, crowds of overalls-clad locals and a red fire engine all fail to pull her out, the little tractor (who had been left behind the barn to rust after the arrival of the new tractor) comes putt-puff-puttedy-chuff-ing down the hill to entice his terrified bovine buddy successfully back to dry ground. Short on internal logic but long on creamy scenes of calf and tractor either gamboling energetically with a gaggle of McCloskey-like geese through neutral-toned fields or resting peacefully in the shade of a gnarled tree (apple, not cork), the episode will certainly draw nostalgic adults. Considering the author’s track record and influences, it may find a welcome from younger audiences too. (Picture book. 5-8)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-399-25248-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2009
SEEN & HEARD
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