A sweet debut that offers a tongue-in-cheek instruction manual for new big sisters.
In social worker Ahuja’s picture book, a well-worn topic—the arrival of a new sibling—gets a multicultural twist.
As the book opens, its young dark-skinned protagonist resists the new baby. “Baby’s loud. Baby’s messy. Sometimes Baby really smells,” she narrates. She then decides that “baby doesn’t know the house rules yet” and proceeds to induct the new baby into the ways of the family. In these spreads, Echeverri’s playful illustrations subtly reinforce this interracial family as Black and South Asian: Mom wears a dupatta during family movie night, and Grandma and Grandpa make rice pudding with their granddaughter; like the protagonist, Dad is illustrated as dark brown, but his black hair is tightly curled while hers is straight; the new baby is painted light brown like Mom but has Dad’s hair texture. As is common in this genre of books, the protagonist grows to accept and love her new sibling, her rules moving from restrictive to playful and inclusive. “The last and most important rule is, no matter what, we stick together,” she explains. “Because… / we’re a team now.” This good-hearted title is one of two concurrent releases from Ahuja; It’s Big Brother Time! is the second, which is nearly identical but depicts the family as Black and East Asian. (This book was reviewed digitally with 6.5-by-13-inch double-page spreads viewed at 33.1% of actual size.)
A sweet debut that offers a tongue-in-cheek instruction manual for new big sisters. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: March 23, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-288438-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperFestival
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
Sweet.
A caregiving bear shares with its cub how love has defined their relationship from the first moment and through the years as the cub has grown.
With rhymes and a steady rhythm that are less singsong-y than similar books, Stansbie seems to have hit a sweet spot for this offering on the I-love-you-always shelf. Readers follow the adult and child as they share special moments together—a sunset, a splash in a pond, climbing a tree, a snuggle—and the adult tells the child that the love it feels has only grown. Stansbie also takes care not to put promises in the adult bear’s mouth that can’t be delivered, acknowledging that physical proximity is not always possible: “Wherever you are, / even when we’re apart… // I’ll love you forever / with all of my heart.” The large trim size helps the sweet illustrations shine; their emphasis is on the close relationship between parent and child. Shaped peekaboo windows offer glimpses of preceding and succeeding pages, images and text carefully placed to work whatever the context. While the die cuts on the interior pages will not hold up to rough handling, they do add whimsy and delight to the book as a whole: “And now that you’re bigger, / you make my heart sing. / My / beautiful / wonderful / magical / thing.” Those last three adjectives are positioned in leaf-shaped cutouts, the turn of the page revealing the roly-poly cub in a pile of leaves, three formed by the die-cuts. Opposite, three vignettes show the cub appreciating the “beautiful,” the “wonderful,” and the “magical.”
Sweet. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-68412-910-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Silver Dolphin
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2019
Instills a sense of well-being in youngsters while encouraging them to explore the natural world.
This reassuring picture book exemplifies how parents throughout the animal kingdom make homes for their offspring.
The narrative is written from the point of view of a parent talking to their child: “If you were a beaver, I would gnaw on trees with my teeth to build a cozy lodge for us to sleep in during the day.” Text appears in big, easy-to-read type, with the name of the creature in boldface. Additional facts about the animal appear in a smaller font, such as: “Beavers have transparent eyelids to help them see under water.” The gathering of land, air, and water animals includes a raven, a flying squirrel, and a sea lion. “Home” might be a nest, a den, or a burrow. One example, of a blue whale who has homes in the north and south (ocean is implied), will help children stretch the concept into feeling at home in the larger world. Illustrations of the habitats have an inviting luminosity. Mature and baby animals are realistically depicted, although facial features appear to have been somewhat softened, perhaps to appeal to young readers. The book ends with the comforting scene of a human parent and child silhouetted in the welcoming lights of the house they approach: “Wherever you may be, you will always have a home with me.”
Instills a sense of well-being in youngsters while encouraging them to explore the natural world. (Informational picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-63217-224-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Little Bigfoot/Sasquatch
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
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