A worthy candidate for your shelf.
From childhood to office to who-knows-where? Be inspired by the life of Pete Buttigieg.
For politically minded readers, Sanders and Hastings provide a concise account of the life and political career of the mayor-turned–presidential candidate. Sanders, an elementary school teacher, knows how to communicate effectively with children and delivers his text in a friendly mix of easy and more-complex sentences. While the majority of the text is written directly, the occasional folksy metaphor adds a little buoyancy. When introducing Buttigieg’s future husband, Chasten Glezman, Sanders states that “like Indiana sweet corn, a relationship began to grow.” Hastings’ digital illustrations capture the humanity of his subject and depict the highs and lows of a life in politics. Many of the illustrations appear to be inspired by photographs of Buttigieg on the campaign trail and in his daily life. While the attention is solely on Mayor Pete, the background artwork features a range of ages, ethnicities, and genders interacting and engaging with Buttigieg. There is no mention of his fraught relationship with South Bend’s African American population, and his stint with McKinsey is covered in one sentence; the book ends before his March 1 withdrawal from the 2020 presidential race. The backmatter includes a timeline, selected bibliography, information about running for president, and (most importantly) a pronunciation guide for “Buttigieg.” Young readers curious about the ongoing political race will find this to be a useful book to help them learn more about this former (and possibly future) presidential hopeful.
A worthy candidate for your shelf. (Picture book/biography. 6-10)Pub Date: July 21, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-250-26757-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era.
The New Orleans school child who famously broke the color line in 1960 while surrounded by federal marshals describes the early days of her experience from a 6-year-old’s perspective.
Bridges told her tale to younger children in 2009’s Ruby Bridges Goes to School, but here the sensibility is more personal, and the sometimes-shocking historical photos have been replaced by uplifting painted scenes. “I didn’t find out what being ‘the first’ really meant until the day I arrived at this new school,” she writes. Unfrightened by the crowd of “screaming white people” that greets her at the school’s door (she thinks it’s like Mardi Gras) but surprised to find herself the only child in her classroom, and even the entire building, she gradually realizes the significance of her act as (in Smith’s illustration) she compares a small personal photo to the all-White class photos posted on a bulletin board and sees the difference. As she reflects on her new understanding, symbolic scenes first depict other dark-skinned children marching into classes in her wake to friendly greetings from lighter-skinned classmates (“School is just school,” she sensibly concludes, “and kids are just kids”) and finally an image of the bright-eyed icon posed next to a soaring bridge of reconciliation. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A unique angle on a watershed moment in the civil rights era. (author and illustrator notes, glossary) (Autobiographical picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-75388-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Orchard/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 21, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2022
PERSPECTIVES
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
