Reviews of the Week
Outside In by Deborah Underwood; illus. by Cindy Derby Primary Houghton 40 pp. g 4/20 978-1-328-86682-0 $17.99 The intersection of outside and inside is creatively explored in this reflection on nature and its gentle persistence and ever-presence. The story begins in nature, as a young girl explores an impressionistic forest....
Chicken Little: The Real and Totally True Tale by Sam Wedelich; illus. by the author Primary Scholastic 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-338-35901-5 $17.99 In this clever spin on the classic tale, Chicken Little makes it clear — right from the get-go — that she’s got plenty of pluck. “Who are...
Lifting as We Climb: Black Women’s Battle for the Ballot Box by Evette Dionne Middle School, High School Viking 176 pp. g 4/20 978-0-45148-154-2 $19.99 In her preface, “Not the History You Learned in School,” Dionne sets the historical scene with the 2016 presidential campaign. Having...
Willa the Wisp [The Fabled Stables] by Jonathan Auxier; illus. by Olga Demidova Primary Amulet/Abrams 96 pp. g 10/20 978-1-4197-4269-9 $12.99 “At the top of the world sat an island. And at the heart of that island lived a boy named Auggie.” So begins this early chapter book full of...
You Matter by Christian Robinson; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Atheneum 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-5344-2169-1 $17.99 e-book ed. 978-1-5344-2170-7 $10.99 No saccharine self-esteem book, this is a powerful affirmation of each reader’s worth. Robinson’s text is loaded with child appeal (“When everyone thinks you’re a pest. / When...
The Complete and Original Norwegian Folktales of Asbjørnsen and Moe by Peter Christen Asbjørnsen and Jørgen Moe; trans. from Norwegian by Tiina Nunnally Intermediate University of Minnesota 320 pp. g 9/19 978-1-5179-0568-2 $34.95 Asbjørnsen and Moe first published their Norske folkeeventyr (“Norwegian folktales”) as a pamphlet in 1841; through the...
Exquisite: The Poetry and Life of Gwendolyn Brooks by Suzanne Slade; illus. by Cozbi A. Cabrera Primary, Intermediate Abrams 48 pp. g 4/20 978-1-4197-3411-3 $17.99 Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000) grew up on the South Side of Chicago “with little money to spare,” but her childhood home was rich in volumes of...
Baloney and Friends by Greg Pizzoli; illus. by the author Primary Disney-Hyperion 87 pp. g 4/20 978-1-368-05454-6 $12.99 In this energetic and amusing comics-styled easy reader, Baloney — an amiable orange pig — interacts with his friends Bizz (a bumblebee), Peanut (a blue horse), and Krabbit (an often crabby and...
One Golden Rule at School: A Counting Book by Selina Alko; illus. by the author Preschool, Primary Ottaviano/Holt 40 pp. g 6/20 978-1-250-16381-3 $17.99 Within the familiar rhythms and routines of a school day, viewers count from one (“One backpack”) to ten (“Ten chickpeas lined up for lunch”) and back...
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