A sensitively told story of a child grappling with her family’s pregnancy loss.
A young girl copes with the loss of a baby sister who passes away in utero.
Raya’s mother is having a baby, and Raya can’t wait to meet her new little sister, Nura (Arabic for “beautiful light”). Although she loves her brother, Samir, Raya is excited at the idea of having a sister—she can’t wait for the two of them to play dress-up and watch cartoons together and to give her sister piggyback rides. Dreaming about the future, Raya delights in imagining her future sister’s love of chocolate ice cream and dolphins. Everything changes when her parents return home after a doctor’s appointment with the news that “Nura won’t be coming home.” The news plunges Raya into grief, and she wonders if her love for Nura is now “trapped inside” her heart. When Raya’s father gently counsels her to spread all her love, she realizes that she doesn’t have to mourn her sister all alone, and she opens up to her parents, her school counselor, and other children who have experienced loss. This tender, thoughtful story is a much-needed tool for discussing pregnancy loss with young children. The smudgy illustrations blur in and out of focus, perfectly reflecting the foggy confusion that Raya feels. Raya and her family are brown-skinned and cued as being of Arab descent; given the relative lack of stories about miscarriage that center characters of color, this is a needed and important title. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
A sensitively told story of a child grappling with her family’s pregnancy loss. (Picture book. 3-8)Pub Date: Aug. 22, 2023
ISBN: 9781665901567
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.
A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.
Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)
Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)Pub Date: March 16, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren.
In talk-show host Fallon and illustrator Ordóñez’s latest picture-book collaboration, an elderly pooch waxes rhapsodic about a life well lived.
Observing Papa sitting in his chair watching TV all day, a young pup says, “I’m starting to think…you don’t do ANYTHING.” So Papa proceeds to list his accomplishments, both big and small, mundane and profound. Some are just a result of being older and physically bigger (being tall enough to reach a high shelf and strong enough to open jars); others include winning a race and performing in a band when he was younger. Eventually, the pup realizes that while Papa may have slowed down in his old age, he’s led a full life. The most satisfying thing about Papa’s life now? Watching his grandchild take center stage: “I can say lots of thoughts / but I choose to be quiet. / I’d rather you discover things and then try it.” Fallon’s straightforward text is sweetly upbeat, though it occasionally lacks flow, forcing incongruous situations together to fit the rhyme scheme (“I cook and I mow, / and I once flew a plane. // I play newspaper puzzles because it’s good for my brain”). Featuring uncluttered, colorful backgrounds, Ordóñez’s child-friendly digital art at times takes on sepia tones, evoking the sense of looking back at old photos or memories. Though the creators tread familiar ground, the love between Papa and his little one is palpable.
A tale of intergenerational bonding to be shared by grandparents and grandchildren. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 13, 2025
ISBN: 9781250393975
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: May 3, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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