Another sturdy upstart in a perennially popular genre.
While Gwendolyn yearns for a pet, her parents are allergic to many and opposed to all.
They offer a diversionary backyard alternative, which Gwendolyn terms a “box of dirt.” “It’s a bed of soil,” they counter. Where she smells “swamp,” they smell “possibilities.” Accordingly, Gwendolyn launches a new pastime engendering self-education, patience, and delight. She borrows and devours The Great Book of Gardening from the library. She obtains seeds from the community seed library and plants futures of marigolds, basil, fennel, and zucchini. Gwendolyn waters as needed and talks to her invisible charges daily. “But nothing happened.” She bans the neighbor’s dog and affixes a proprietary sign. “But still, nothing happened. / Until the day the soil did a trick.” Tiny leaves push up, joined by others. Gwendolyn names the seedlings and logs information about her growing plants. They blossom, attract bees and butterflies, and bring joy. The soil bed “did not have two legs, four legs, or any legs at all. But it was alive, and Gwendolyn could talk to it, care for it, and watch it grow.” Renaud appealingly conveys the parents’ wryness and daughter’s enthusiasm. The family members, including a baby, all have dark hair and ruddy complexions; the seed exchange’s librarian presents Black. Kheiriyeh’s collages capture Gwendolyn’s bouncy exuberance and present the plants in oversized, stylized fashion. Curiously, a note ties the emergence of seed libraries to the repurposing of library card catalogs—hardly an exclusive purview for either. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10.5-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 79.1% of actual size.)
Another sturdy upstart in a perennially popular genre. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-984815-28-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books
Review Posted Online: March 30, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it.
What happens when a robot washes up alone on an island?
“Everything was just right on the island.” Brown beautifully re-creates the first days of Roz, the protagonist of his Wild Robot novels, as she adapts to living in the natural world. A storm-tossed ship, seen in the opening just before the title page, and a packing crate are the only other human-made objects to appear in this close-up look at the robot and her new home. Roz emerges from the crate, and her first thought as she sets off up a grassy hill—”This must be where I belong”—is sweetly glorious, a note of recognition rather than conquest. Roz learns to move, hide, and communicate like the creatures she meets. When she discovers an orphaned egg—and the gosling Brightbill, who eventually hatches—her decision to be his mother seems a natural extension of her adaptation. Once he flies south for the winter, her quiet wait across seasons for his return is a poignant portrayal of separation and change. Brown’s clean, precise lines and deep, light-filled colors offer a sense of what Roz might be seeing, suggesting a place that is alive yet deeply serene and radiant. Though the book stands alone, it adds an immensely appealing dimension to Roz’s world. Round thumbnails offer charming peeks into the island world, depicting Roz’s animal neighbors and Brightbill’s maturation.
A hymn to the intrinsic loveliness of the wild and the possibility of sharing it. (author’s note) (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: June 24, 2025
ISBN: 9780316669467
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way.
All the typical worries and excuses kids have about school are filtered through Willems’ hysterical, bus-loving Pigeon.
Told mostly in speech balloons, the bird’s monologue will have kids (and their caregivers) in stitches at Pigeon’s excuses. From already knowing everything (except whatever question readers choose to provide in response to “Go ahead—ask me a question. / Any question!”) to fearing learning too much (“My head might pop off”), Pigeon’s imagination has run wild. Readers familiar with Pigeon will recognize the muted, matte backgrounds that show off the bird’s shenanigans so well. As in previous outings, Willems varies the size of the pigeon on the page to help communicate emotion, the bird teeny small on the double-page spread that illustrates the confession that “I’m… / scared.” And Pigeon’s eight-box rant about all the perils of school (“The unknown stresses me out, dude”) is marvelously followed by the realization (complete with lightbulb thought bubble) that school is the place for students to practice, with experts, all those skills they don’t yet have. But it is the ending that is so Willems, so Pigeon, and so perfect. Pigeon’s last question is “Well, HOW am I supposed to get there, anyway!?!” Readers will readily guess both the answer and Pigeon’s reaction.
Yes, the Pigeon has to go to school, and so do readers, and this book will surely ease the way. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: July 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-368-04645-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 7, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2019
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