A kid-friendly exploration of a significant national holiday.
On a day of festivities, a curious African American child asks the rest of the family some important questions.
The Juneteenth block party brings the whole neighborhood together with food and games. Our 5-year-old narrator, hair adorned with twists, knows that everyone comes together on this day to “celebrate our freedom.” But what did the first celebration look like? The child turns to an older cousin, Katelin, who describes the first Juneteenth that she remembers, five years ago: a big parade, a lot of red drink, and delicious brisket. Auntie Judy’s not quite old enough to recall the first Juneteenth, but she says that in the 1980s, the day was observed with a drum circle in the park, smothered turkey wings, and everyone singing; the opening lyrics to “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (widely considered the Black national anthem) float across the page as she reminisces. Finally, elderly Mr. Robert tells the youngster—and readers—about the first Juneteenth, which his mother attended, and describes similarities and differences to celebrations today. After a day of learning history through discussions with family and community, the narrator considers how Juneteenth will look in another 100 years. Dominated by shades of red, Hodge’s bright cartoons sets a festive tone, even as Nash gently explains that the holiday is rooted in the painful history of enslavement. Backmatter offers further context and notes how important red food and drinks are on this day.
A kid-friendly exploration of a significant national holiday. (strawberry lemonade recipe) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: May 20, 2025
ISBN: 9781250908797
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Godwin Books
Review Posted Online: March 22, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2025
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among
Pete, the cat who couldn’t care less, celebrates Christmas with his inimitable lassitude.
If it weren’t part of the title and repeated on every other page, readers unfamiliar with Pete’s shtick might have a hard time arriving at “groovy” to describe his Christmas celebration, as the expressionless cat displays not a hint of groove in Dean’s now-trademark illustrations. Nor does Pete have a great sense of scansion: “On the first day of Christmas, / Pete gave to me… / A road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” The cat is shown at the wheel of a yellow microbus strung with garland and lights and with a star-topped tree tied to its roof. On the second day of Christmas Pete gives “me” (here depicted as a gray squirrel who gets on the bus) “2 fuzzy gloves, and a road trip to the sea. / GROOVY!” On the third day, he gives “me” (now a white cat who joins Pete and the squirrel) “3 yummy cupcakes,” etc. The “me” mentioned in the lyrics changes from day to day and gift to gift, with “4 far-out surfboards” (a frog), “5 onion rings” (crocodile), and “6 skateboards rolling” (a yellow bird that shares its skateboards with the white cat, the squirrel, the frog, and the crocodile while Pete drives on). Gifts and animals pile on until the microbus finally arrives at the seaside and readers are told yet again that it’s all “GROOVY!”
Pete’s fans might find it groovy; anyone else has plenty of other “12 Days of Christmas” variants to choose among . (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-267527-9
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
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Only for dedicated fans of the series.
When a kid gets the part of the ninja master in the school play, it finally seems to be the right time to tackle the closet monster.
“I spot my monster right away. / He’s practicing his ROAR. / He almost scares me half to death, / but I won’t be scared anymore!” The monster is a large, fluffy poison-green beast with blue hands and feet and face and a fluffy blue-and-green–striped tail. The kid employs a “bag of tricks” to try to catch the monster: in it are a giant wind-up shark, two cans of silly string, and an elaborate cage-and-robot trap. This last works, but with an unexpected result: the monster looks sad. Turns out he was only scaring the boy to wake him up so they could be friends. The monster greets the boy in the usual monster way: he “rips a massive FART!!” that smells like strawberries and lime, and then they go to the monster’s house to meet his parents and play. The final two spreads show the duo getting ready for bed, which is a rather anticlimactic end to what has otherwise been a rambunctious tale. Elkerton’s bright illustrations have a TV-cartoon aesthetic, and his playful beast is never scary. The narrator is depicted with black eyes and hair and pale skin. Wallace’s limping verses are uninspired at best, and the scansion and meter are frequently off.
Only for dedicated fans of the series. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4926-4894-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 14, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2017
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