Esperanza Caramelo the Star of Nochebuena

Esperanza Caramelo the Star of NochebuenaEsperanza Caramelo, the Star of Nochebuena by Elisa Chavarri, Karla Valenti
ISBN: 0593488679
Genres: Holiday
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
three-stars

“Esperanza Caramelo the Star of Nochebuena” is written by Karla Arenas Valenti and illustrated by Elisa Chavarri. Esperanza Caramelo is a spun-sugar ornament who awakens on Nochebuena (Christmas Eve) and begins dancing around the Pasteleria, bringing all the other ornaments to life. All of the ornaments are having a grand time when a cat knocks everything onto the floor! What will they do now?

Inspired by the author’s abuela who made elaborate cakes for Nochebuena, the story is fun and full of movement. The illustrations are bright and dynamic, with the ornaments singing and spinning around the bakery. Written for kids age 3 to 6. I read both the English and Spanish editions of this book. A recommended purchase for libraries with Latinx, Hispanic, and Filipinx patrons, or for large holiday collections.

Reviewed by Kate Radke, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook, ME.

three-stars

Silver Linings

Silver LiningsSilver Linings by Fiona Woodcock
Published by Greenwillow Books on February 28, 2023
ISBN: 0062995901
Pages: 32
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
three-stars

Pip and Parker are great friends who spend a lot of time together. Sometimes they spend time in companionable silence. Sometimes something goes wrong for one of them and they know what to do, which is to offer sympathy, a different perspective, a new activity, or a hug. The message in this picture book will resonate with kids who know that things can go wrong and that it’s nice to have an understanding friend by your side when they do. With a palette of teals and reds, the gentle artwork, created with hand-cut rubber stamps, stencils, acrylic paint, colored pencils, and oil pastels, highlights some of the small catastrophes and the silver linings that can come from the negative. Pip presents white and Parker is Black. A lovely story to use as a read aloud PreK-grade 2 classroom.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Falmouth Middle School

three-stars

This Is Not a Unicorn

This Is Not a UnicornThis is NOT a Unicorn! by Barry Timms, Ged Adamson
Published by Nosy Crow on Jun 6, 2023
Pages: 32
Genres: Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
five-stars

This large picture book will grab readers from the start with its bright cover and promise of silliness. Using a lively authorial voice, Timms invites the reader to observe all of the ways that the creature in the book, who might *look* like a unicorn, is not. Ridiculous, but clever, rhymes are illustrated to perfection by Ged Adamson as the “not” unicorn demonstrates its other talents. Like the child in the book, listeners will be awed, entertained, and delighted by the surprising things the animal IS. Publisher Nosy Crow also offers a QR code on the back cover that can be scanned by a smartphone and provides a free audio reading of the book. Highly recommend for public library and pre-K and elementary school programs.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Falmouth Middle School

five-stars

Together With You

Together With YouTogether With You by Jarvis, Patricia Toht
Published by Candlewick Press on February 14, 2023
ISBN: 1536223514
Pages: 32
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

A sweet, tender story about the love between grandparent and grandchild takes the reader on a walk through the seasons. The relationship between the grandmother and grandson shines through in both the illustrations and words. The rhymes flow well and are read easily. So much so that when I finished it and saw it was described as a rhyming book, I had to go back and check to see that it was so. The poetic texts details and invites readers to reflect on the sites, tastes, sounds and feels of each season – spring rainbow, a chilly ice pop in summer, fleeces and sweaters in autumn, and hot cocoa and peppermint tea in winter. A perfect bedtime story to let a child know they are loved. This active Grandma is pretty cool, too!

Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library

four-stars

Wild Blue: Taming a Big-Kid Bike

Wild Blue: Taming a Big-Kid BikeWild Blue: Taming a Big-Kid Bike by Dashka Slater, Laura Hughes
Published by Candlewick Press ISBN: 1536215678
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

Kayla has outgrown her bicycle with training wheels, nicknamed “the pink pony.” Daddy takes her to a store and she picks out a blue two-wheel bike that she names “Wild Blue.” When she tries to ride Wild Blue, she is thrown again and again. Kayla climbs back on and eventually tames Wild Blue in this endearing story about learning to ride a bike. The clever metaphor that exists in the girl’s imagination of taming a wild stallion is effective. The illustrations depict Wild Blue as both a horse and a bicycle. Kayla sometimes wears a cowboy hat and other times a bicycle helmet. Her perseverance rings true despite her setbacks. When daddy says at the end, “Looks like you tamed that bicycle,” she responds, “Nope. She’s still wild! But so am I.” I like her spunk!

Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library

four-stars

I Am Hungry

I Am HungryI Am Hungry by Michael Rosen, Robert Starling
Published by Candlewick Press on July 11, 2023
ISBN: 153622510X
Pages: 32
Genres: Animals
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
two-stars

The cover illustration of a very hungry squirrel is attractive. Unfortunately, the list of all the items he eats starts out sensibly – a warm roll, popcorn in a bowl – but morphs into nonsensical items, such as a very bad dream, a nasty fright,  a dark and stormy night, and finally, “me?” It seems the items were chosen just because they rhymed and not because they were clever. The cute squirrel character who caught my eye on the cover, does remain adorable throughout the book.

Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library

two-stars

Witch & Wombat

Witch & WombatWitch & Wombat by Ashley Belote
Published by Random House Children's Books on July 4, 2023
ISBN: 0593569636
Genres: Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

Wilma, a young witch, cannot wait to get her first cat, but when the pet store is out of kittens, Wilma brings home a wombat! Even though both Wilma and Wombat try to make Wombat into a cat, they fall short, much to the reader’s delight and hilarity. But when Wilma opens her mind, she discovers that Wombat is a very good companion. The digitally rendered, colorful illustrations are graphic novel-like and peppered throughout with speech bubbles. This tale encourages readers to tale that encourages readers to accept ourselves and embrace what makes us different. It’s delightful and will be a good story time selection.

 

Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library

four-stars

The Tree and the River

The Tree and the RiverThe Tree and the River by Aaron Becker
Published by Candlewick Press on March 14, 2023
ISBN: 1536223298
Pages: 32
Genres: Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure / General
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
five-stars

In Aaron Becker’s latest wordless book, we watch an interaction unfold between nature and the growth of civilization. What starts as a house built and populated by one family becomes two communities (one red, one blue). As it evolves, the settlements become walled fortresses, and eventually grow into steam-punkish cities. Through this transformation, the  natural world is subsumed but eventually has the last word (or image, in this case). It feels like a fantasy but reads like a fable, a cautionary tale about taking from the land without giving back.

Becker’s line drawings (created with pencil, gouache, and digital paint) tells the story of The Tree and the River, with his award-winning expertise. Each detailed, full-bleed, double-spread image tells the story of that moment, but with the continuity and detail that creates a through-line for attentive readers. This is a book designed to provoke thought, questions, and critical thinking. It is a wonderful book for one reader to pore over slowly, page by page, or for a class “read-aloud”; it could work with a middle school social studies class learning about the elements of civilization.

Deanna Contrino, SLMS/MLIS Young School Librarian, Saco ME

five-stars

Soon, Your Hands

Soon, Your HandsSoon, Your Hands by Elizabeth Lilly, Jonathan Stutzman
Published by Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers on 2023
ISBN: 0593427076
Genres: Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure / General
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

Soon, Your Hands is a message from a wise caregiver (told in first person) who enumerates the many ways the child’s hands will discover new experiences and skills.  It is told in the present, with an eye to the future. The reader watches three young children, as each explores the world around them in this picture book by Jonathan Stutzman. 

As the story progresses, we learn much about each child’s family and interests through Lilly’s watercolor and ink illustrations, which contextualize the abstract concepts of the text: “Soon your hands will discover the world”, as Reyna waves to her father’s plane as it takes off. We do not learn the names of the children until nearly the end of the book, when they are depicted as adults in occupations, seen now as a progression from their childhood interests. 

A two-page American Sign Language Glossary in the back of the book illustrates and explains how to sign some of the ASL words Reyna uses with her family, which could prompt a rereading of the book. Children may evaluate the characters’ actions (baking a cake, using ALS, caring for a kitten, etc.) and say, “I could do that!” The gentle and rhythmic pace of the prose makes it a very good bedtime story nominee. Recommended for public library collections.

four-stars

Gloria’s Promise: A Ballet Dancer’s First Step

Gloria’s Promise: A Ballet Dancer’s First StepGloria's Promise: A Ballet Dancer's First Step by Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman, Robin Preiss Glasser
on March 21, 2023
ISBN: 059318100X
Genres: Juvenile Fiction / Action & Adventure / General
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads
four-stars

Young ballet dancers looking for a story that reinforces their dreams of breathing in the rarefied air of the American Ballet Theatre will enjoy this book. The reader follows Gloria who is auditioning for the summer program of the ABT school. The “promise” of the title is defined as talent by one of the ballet teachers, who states that all the auditioners have talent. Gloria hopes that she possesses enough of the other qualities necessary to gain a spot in the program: persistence, practice, and determination. 

The illustrations are charming and pretty, showing Gloria and the other dancers in lively, dynamic action. Gloria appears to be white with a diverse cast of fellow dancers. Readers will appreciate Gloria’s determination and immersion in the world of ballet, and root for the (promised) happy ending. A solid story and a solid marketing tool for the American Ballet Theatre.

Deanna Contrino, SLMS/MLIS Young School Library, Saco ME

four-stars