A tender, subtle introduction to death.
A tribute to a long, well-lived life.
Young Paula identifies with swift animals, like horses and dolphins, but especially sky-skimming birds. Grown up, she cooks sumptuous stews for her family (two small beings are pictured) and her dog, Leon. Her zest for food leaves her covered in breadcrumbs and earns her the name Mommy Crumbs. Years flow by with the turn of a page: Leon has died and is fondly remembered; Mommy Crumbs is now a grandmother. These days, her cooking is limited to snacks, but she’s still covered in crumbs, so her grandkids bring her a gift: a chick that gobbles them up. The chick quickly grows enormous, and Mommy Crumbs, folded against its wing, is “very, very old.” Sitting atop the fowl, she smilingly bids goodbye to her family, happy that she is going to achieve her lifelong dream: to fly. Now the family misses her, but every crumb they see is a reminder of the enduring presence of their beloved matriarch. Andrés and his mother, González, have written a refreshingly uplifting, understated take on loss. Translated from Spanish, their words are illuminated by brilliant, offbeat color-block, collagelike images that play blue and orange tones off each other, with a fine disregard for small accuracies (Paula has cyan hair, and though she and many characters are light-skinned, other have bluish skin).
A tender, subtle introduction to death. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9788419607386
Page Count: 36
Publisher: NubeOcho
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Being kind and helpful lights up the day from within in this inspiring and idyllic slice-of-life tale.
Actor, social media star, and entrepreneur Brown pens a joyful paean to positive thinking in her children’s debut.
Brown-skinned Tab rides a strawberry-themed bike, accompanied by a curly-haired black dog, Grady. Tab’s dazzling smile and wide eyes signal the upbeat theme echoed in the text, celebrating the sun’s warmth, which “fills everyone up with joy.” But Tab’s mood shifts, as it’s a “cloudy and gray” June day. Alert readers will spot the dog’s smiling countenance and note glimpses of sunny yellow butterflies and flowers. Mama’s reassurance that there’s “always a chance” for sunshine also underscores the optimism. Tab and Grady bike through suburban streets “to find the sun.” Along the way, the two stop to assist a neighbor building a birdhouse, loft a kite for friends Frankie and Fonte, and lend a hand to others, all while still having fun. Mama steers Tab toward an eventual understanding of the real source of joy: Though the sun didn’t appear, “I brightened everyone’s day!” The illustrations subtly underscore the message of this radiant story as touches of gold lighten the palette, which ends with sunny brilliance. Most characters read Black, though Tab’s community includes people who vary in skin tone, body type, and ability.
Being kind and helpful lights up the day from within in this inspiring and idyllic slice-of-life tale. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: March 11, 2025
ISBN: 9780063342262
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: March 21, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2025
While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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