Tender and empathetic—and a road map for families undergoing similar shifts.
Things change when Mommy and Daddy announce they’ll be getting divorced.
Poppy and Robin learn that the family will have two houses, one for Mommy and one for Daddy; they’ll split their time between their parents. The siblings respond in different yet equally relatable ways. Poppy prefers to keep the news private, while Robin confides his worries to his friends. Both children have big, messy feelings that emerge at unexpected times. As the seasons pass, Poppy and Robin gradually adjust. After all, though Mommy and Daddy live apart, the children realize that they will always be a family. This is a quiet, thoughtful depiction of divorce, with parents who do an exceptional job of supporting their young children through a tough time. Sunflowers are a motif throughout. When Mommy and Daddy are together, the flowers sprout tall; after news of the divorce, they seem to wilt; and toward the end, the children plant sunflower seeds—a sign that the family’s love will endure, no matter what. Appropriately warm, gentle digital illustrations employ late-summer and early-autumn colors and seem to be dusk-lit. Mommy has pale skin and straight hair, Daddy has medium brown skin and wavy hair, and Poppy and Robin both have light brown skin and their father’s hair texture.
Tender and empathetic—and a road map for families undergoing similar shifts. (a note for parents and caregivers, online resources, recommended reading) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Jan. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9780316577564
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Christy Ottaviano Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
Safe to creep on by.
Carle’s famous caterpillar expresses its love.
In three sentences that stretch out over most of the book’s 32 pages, the (here, at least) not-so-ravenous larva first describes the object of its love, then describes how that loved one makes it feel before concluding, “That’s why… / I[heart]U.” There is little original in either visual or textual content, much of it mined from The Very Hungry Caterpillar. “You are… / …so sweet,” proclaims the caterpillar as it crawls through the hole it’s munched in a strawberry; “…the cherry on my cake,” it says as it perches on the familiar square of chocolate cake; “…the apple of my eye,” it announces as it emerges from an apple. Images familiar from other works join the smiling sun that shone down on the caterpillar as it delivers assurances that “you make… / …the sun shine brighter / …the stars sparkle,” and so on. The book is small, only 7 inches high and 5 ¾ inches across when closed—probably not coincidentally about the size of a greeting card. While generations of children have grown up with the ravenous caterpillar, this collection of Carle imagery and platitudinous sentiment has little of his classic’s charm. The melding of Carle’s caterpillar with Robert Indiana’s iconic LOVE on the book’s cover, alas, draws further attention to its derivative nature.
Safe to creep on by. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Dec. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-448-48932-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Too cute to be spooky indeed but most certainly sweet.
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)Pub Date: Aug. 13, 2024
ISBN: 9780593702901
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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