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THE WIND MAY BLOW

Name: THE WIND MAY BLOW
Author: Sasha Quinton
ISBN: 978-1-680-10268-0

by Sasha Quinton ; illustrated by Thomas Hegbrook ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 3, 2021

Exciting, heartwarming, and wise—this truly will resonate with a range of ages.

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As potential challenges are depicted, an offstage parent offers a child loving messages of mindfulness and empowerment.

Is this another sentimental book with singsong couplets published mainly for presentation at baby showers and graduation? No! Imaginatively shaped pages and clever die cuts that highlight important images (the sun; the child’s constant canine companion) or words (breathe, will rise again) ensure child appeal. The rhymes please and surprise, as they occur irregularly: sometimes internally, at others, at the end of phrases. The brown-skinned child protagonist is at first swaddled in red baby blankets, then in a similarly colored hoodie—thus, gender is indeterminate, allowing for universal identification while drawing comparisons to two of children’s literature’s iconic characters. The palette shifts from warm and sunny to the dramatic blues and purples of a nocturnal tempest illuminated by lightning as a storm tosses and splinters the child’s raft. The tense has changed from a reflective past to an imagined present or future, with calming assurances: “know that… / you are strong enough. / …you are smart enough. / … you have all you need / to make it through.” As timber is transformed into a shelter for the dog and protagonist, the narrative suggests that both structure and child are “as something new.” From the shimmering foil of the jacket to the contrasting endpapers, this picture book packs substance and style into its compact format.

Exciting, heartwarming, and wise—this truly will resonate with a range of ages. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021

ISBN: 978-1-680-10268-0

Page Count: 36

Publisher: Tiger Tales

Review Posted Online: June 15, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
FLORABELLE
by Sasha Quinton ; illustrated by Brigette Barrager ; photographed by Michel Tcherevkoff

- PROFILES
Sunshine Always Follows the Rain

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LITTLE BLUE TRUCK AND RACER RED

From the Little Blue Truck series

by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 25, 2025

A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share.

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In this latest in the series, Little Blue Truck, driven by pal Toad, is challenged to a countryside race by Racer Red, a sleek, low-slung vehicle.

Blue agrees, and the race is on. Although the two start off “hood to hood / and wheel to wheel,” they switch positions often as they speed their way over dusty country roads. Blue’s farm friends follow along to share in the excitement and shout out encouragement; adult readers will have fun voicing the various animal sounds. Short rhyming verses on each page and several strategic page turns add drama to the narrative, but soft, mottled effects in the otherwise colorful illustrations keep the competition from becoming too intense. Racer Red crosses the finish line first, but Blue is a gracious loser, happy to have worked hard. That’s a new concept for Racer Red, who’s laser-focused on victory but takes Blue’s words (“win or lose, it’s fun to try!”) to heart—a revelation that may lead to worthwhile storytime discussions. When Blue’s farm animal friends hop into the truck for the ride home, Racer Red tags along and learns a second lesson, one about speed. “Fast is fun, / and slow is too, / as long as you’re / with friends.”

A friendship tale with solid messaging and plenty of fun sounds to share. (Picture book. 4-7)

Pub Date: March 25, 2025

ISBN: 9780063387843

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Clarion/HarperCollins

Review Posted Online: Jan. 18, 2025

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2025

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S TRANSPORTATION

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK MAKES A FRIEND
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by Jill McElmurry

- BOOK REVIEW
TIME FOR SCHOOL, LITTLE BLUE TRUCK
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph

- BOOK REVIEW
LITTLE BLUE TRUCK'S VALENTINE
by Alice Schertle ; illustrated by John Joseph

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ON THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN

by Tish Rabe ; illustrated by Laura Hughes ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 21, 2016

While this is a fairly bland treatment compared to Deborah Lee Rose and Carey Armstrong-Ellis’ The Twelve Days of...

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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)