Eye-catching though it is, it is unlikely to displace more traditional, warmer offerings on this subject.
Inspired by a photograph showing a family of three, the man wearing horizontal stripes, the woman vertical, and the child a checkered shirt, this whimsical debut picture book challenges the limits of ultradesigned books for children.
The characteristics and preferences of the pinheaded protagonists are illustrated in bold geometric black and white on strong, flat background colors. Mister Horizontal, predictably, loves the smooth, gliding motions of rollerblading and sailing. Miss Vertical prefers dizzying aerial adventures; she “loves launching herself into orbit and looping through the air.” Mister Horizontal likes to bend and stretch, (which action confusingly causes his stripes to be vertical on the page.) Miss Vertical, the thrill seeker, loves high-wire acrobatics, elevators, bungee jumping, rockets, skyscrapers and balloons. Mister Horizontal, more down-to-earth, prefers the desert, the ocean, ants marching in straight lines, lounging, napping and gardening. The book’s ulterior motive is suddenly revealed at the end, in a question: “Now what do you think… / …their child will love?” And there is their child, wearing a checkered shirt, just like the boy in a closing photo. Witty, clever, elegantly designed but certainly not touchy-feely, this book is a somewhat strained synthesis of graphic illustration, seemingly designed to teach the concept of orientation in conjunction with an analysis of personality traits.
Eye-catching though it is, it is unlikely to displace more traditional, warmer offerings on this subject. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-59270-161-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 13, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2014
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on...
Continuing from their acclaimed Those Shoes (2007), Boelts and Jones entwine conversations on money, motives, and morality.
This second collaboration between author and illustrator is set within an urban multicultural streetscape, where brown-skinned protagonist Ruben wishes for a bike like his friend Sergio’s. He wishes, but Ruben knows too well the pressure his family feels to prioritize the essentials. While Sergio buys a pack of football cards from Sonny’s Grocery, Ruben must buy the bread his mom wants. A familiar lady drops what Ruben believes to be a $1 bill, but picking it up, to his shock, he discovers $100! Is this Ruben’s chance to get himself the bike of his dreams? In a fateful twist, Ruben loses track of the C-note and is sent into a panic. After finally finding it nestled deep in a backpack pocket, he comes to a sense of moral clarity: “I remember how it was for me when that money that was hers—then mine—was gone.” When he returns the bill to her, the lady offers Ruben her blessing, leaving him with double-dipped emotions, “happy and mixed up, full and empty.” Readers will be pleased that there’s no reward for Ruben’s choice of integrity beyond the priceless love and warmth of a family’s care and pride.
Embedded in this heartwarming story of doing the right thing is a deft examination of the pressures of income inequality on children. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6649-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2016
Sweet—and savory.
When a girl visits her grandmother, a writer and “grand friend,” she is seeking something special to share at show and tell on the first day of school.
Before Brook can explain, Mimi expresses concern that certain words describing the natural world will disappear if someone doesn’t care for and use them. (An author’s note explains the author’s motivation: She had read of the removal of 100 words about outdoor phenomena from the Oxford Junior Dictionary.) The duo sets out to search for and experience the 19 words on Mimi’s list, from “acorn” and “buttercup” to “violet” and “willow.” Kloepper’s soft illustrations feature green and brown earth tones that frame the white, matte pages; bursts of red, purple, and other spot colors enliven the scenes. Both Mimi and Brook are depicted as white. The expedition is described in vivid language, organized as free verse in single sentences or short paragraphs. Key words are printed in color in a larger display type and capital letters. Sensory details allow the protagonist to hear, see, smell, taste, and hold the wild: “ ‘Quick! Make a wish!’ said Mimi, / holding out a DANDELION, / fairy dust sitting on a stem. / ‘Blow on it and the seeds will fly. / Your tiny wishes in the air.’ ” It’s a day of wonder, with a touch of danger and a solution to Brook’s quest. The last page forms an envelope for readers’ own vocabulary collections.
Sweet—and savory. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: March 10, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7073-2
Page Count: 62
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2020
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