A thoughtful primer on the transformative power of goodness.
A Supreme Court justice offers guidance on how to brighten the world—and an ode to her late mother.
Beginning with an excerpt from the Homeric Hymns, Sotomayor presents a graceful tribute to her mother, Celina, whose compassion and generosity still linger with her. The lessons Celina imparted form the crux of this story, shared in brief, stylized snapshots that underscore how “she lit up everyone around her.” In the sugar cane fields of Puerto Rico, young Celina summoned the bravery to steer her confused, sick mother back home amid the night’s darkness. Growing up alongside her strict older sister, Celina beautified their home through her daily hard work. Other examples—Celina befriending a lonely elderly woman, nourishing a nephew’s artistic dreams, leveraging her nursing skills to heal others—come together for a portrait of a woman who “showed her love and brought brightness to her family, her community, and the world.” Sotomayor punctuates each glimpse of a good deed with an explicit affirmation, and though Celina occasionally comes across as an almost overly idealized, uncomplicated subject, on the whole, this is a timely reminder that a remarkable sense of community can emerge through ordinary means. Alcántara’s dreamy, ornate marker-and-gouache artwork emphasizes the beauty of kindness.
A thoughtful primer on the transformative power of goodness. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Sept. 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780593206294
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Philomel
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
Halloween is used merely as a backdrop; better holiday titles for young readers are available.
A ghost learns to appreciate his differences.
The little ghost protagonist of this title is unusual. He’s a quilt, not a lightweight sheet like his parents and friends. He dislikes being different despite his mom’s reassurance that his ancestors also had unconventional appearances. Halloween makes the little ghost happy, though. He decides to watch trick-or-treaters by draping over a porch chair—but lands on a porch rail instead. A mom accompanying her daughter picks him up, wraps him around her chilly daughter, and brings him home with them! The family likes his looks and comforting warmth, and the little ghost immediately feels better about himself. As soon as he’s able to, he flies out through the chimney and muses happily that this adventure happened only due to his being a quilt. This odd but gently told story conveys the importance of self-respect and acceptance of one’s uniqueness. The delivery of this positive message has something of a heavy-handed feel and is rushed besides. It also isn’t entirely logical: The protagonist could have been a different type of covering; a blanket, for instance, might have enjoyed an identical experience. The soft, pleasing illustrations’ palette of tans, grays, white, black, some touches of color, and, occasionally, white text against black backgrounds suggest isolation, such as the ghost feels about himself. Most humans, including the trick-or-treating mom and daughter, have beige skin. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-16.6-inch double-page spreads viewed at 66.2% of actual size.)
Halloween is used merely as a backdrop; better holiday titles for young readers are available. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-7352-6447-2
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
Just the thing for anyone with a Grinch-y tree of their own in the yard.
A grouchy sapling on a Christmas tree farm finds that there are better things than lights and decorations for its branches.
A Grinch among the other trees on the farm is determined never to become a sappy Christmas tree—and never to leave its spot. Its determination makes it so: It grows gnarled and twisted and needle-less. As time passes, the farm is swallowed by the suburbs. The neighborhood kids dare one another to climb the scary, grumpy-looking tree, and soon, they are using its branches for their imaginative play, the tree serving as a pirate ship, a fort, a spaceship, and a dragon. But in winter, the tree stands alone and feels bereft and lonely for the first time ever, and it can’t look away from the decorated tree inside the house next to its lot. When some parents threaten to cut the “horrible” tree down, the tree thinks, “Not now that my limbs are full of happy children,” showing how far it has come. Happily for the tree, the children won’t give up so easily, and though the tree never wished to become a Christmas tree, it’s perfectly content being a “trick or tree.” Martinez’s digital illustrations play up the humorous dichotomy between the happy, aspiring Christmas trees (and their shoppers) and the grumpy tree, and the diverse humans are satisfyingly expressive.
Just the thing for anyone with a Grinch-y tree of their own in the yard. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Aug. 6, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4926-7335-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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