A bright, bold picture-book biography that challenges conceptions of masculinity and strength.
The first openly gay strongman overhauls stereotypes.
Whether opening “the TIGHTEST pickle jars” or carrying many packed grocery bags into the house all at once, Rob Kearney is a strong kid. As he grows up, he finds his calling in strength sports. A teacher introduces 17-year-old Rob to the Strongman competition, kindling his dream of becoming a weightlifting champion. First, he trains to lift 150 pounds, then 200, then 300, then 400—the equivalent of “more than 800 STUFFED RAINBOW UNICORNS.” Despite all of his training, Rob flounders at his first big competition since he doesn’t feel quite right in his “boring” and “bleak” weightlifting gear. That changes when Rob falls in love with Joey, who pushes Rob to wear whatever “bright, bold colors” he wants. But can Rob win the title of “strongest person in North America?” Real-life strongman Kearney and LGBTQ+ parenting expert Rosswood team up to create this positive, affirming picture-book memoir. Although one scene depicts an instance of dress code discrimination, the story maintains a sunny tone. Certain words are bolded throughout the text for emphasis, particularly those related to Rob’s impressive feats. Rob and Joey are both White and have mohawks, but Chanani’s colorful digital illustrations depict ethnically diverse spectators. Backmatter delves more deeply into strongman events and—staying within the gender binary—mentions the existence of “a separate strongwoman division.” (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A bright, bold picture-book biography that challenges conceptions of masculinity and strength. (author's note, bibliography) (Picture-book biography. 4-8)Pub Date: May 10, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-316-29290-0
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
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
While the blend of folklore, fantasy and realism is certainly far-fetched, Imani, with her winning personality, is a child...
Imani endures the insults heaped upon her by the other village children, but she never gives up her dreams.
The Masai girl is tiny compared to the other children, but she is full of imagination and perseverance. Luckily, she has a mother who believes in her and tells her stories that will fuel that imagination. Mama tells her about the moon goddess, Olapa, who wins over the sun god. She tells Imani about Anansi, the trickster spider who vanquishes a larger snake. (Troublingly, the fact that Anansi is a West African figure, not of the Masai, goes unaddressed in both text and author’s note.) Inspired, the tiny girl tries to find new ways to achieve her dream: to touch the moon. One day, after crashing to the ground yet again when her leafy wings fail, she is ready to forget her hopes. That night, she witnesses the adumu, the special warriors’ jumping dance. Imani wakes the next morning, determined to jump to the moon. After jumping all day, she reaches the moon, meets Olapa and receives a special present from the goddess, a small moon rock. Now she becomes the storyteller when she relates her adventure to Mama. The watercolor-and-graphite illustrations have been enhanced digitally, and the night scenes of storytelling and fantasy with their glowing stars and moons have a more powerful impact than the daytime scenes, with their blander colors.
While the blend of folklore, fantasy and realism is certainly far-fetched, Imani, with her winning personality, is a child to be admired. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-934133-57-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Mackinac Island Press
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2014
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