A stunning exploration of animal habitats, this gorgeously illustrated board book invites readers to discover where creatures make their homes. Each spread features a new animal alongside its dwelling, with rhyming couplets that span two pages: “A home can be a busy, buzzy place…/ or be a calm and quiet space.” One spread highlights a close-up watercolor of a bee, paired with a hive buzzing with activity, while the next showcases a frog and a log, hollow where it resides. The muted palette and vivid illustrations beautifully enhance the poetic text, making this an irresistible choice for young readers. VERDICT A first purchase for libraries and schools alike. —School Library Journal
Winter’s book offers a blunt and eerily modern take on the events and consequences of the infamous Salem Witch Trials, and it will make readers think twice about spreading rumors. Readers are immediately warned, in a riveting second-person narration, how pointing blame on someone else might feel safe to do when others are acting the same way, but it starts a domino effect of ruining the reputation of everyone in the vicinity: “If you’re one of the finger-pointers, you won’t get those fingers pointed at you, or so you think.” The simple, contemporary style is free of outdated and confusing terms, and Winter’s text is quick to point out that those who create and share lies can easily destroy another person’s life as they did in Salem. Holland’s illustrations are done in a gorgeous classical painting style to starkly depict the deadly verdicts carried out on innocent victims. While the faces of the victims are not displayed, the images, such as three woman dangling after being hanged, can be provocative in a book intended for children. The author’s note contains more context about the details of the Salem Witch Trials, including a more recent update on how the victims are memorialized. VERDICT As an important work in combating mob mentality and misinformation, this is a good purchase for libraries to connect historical events to today’s current issues. —School Library Journal
Simple in words yet deep in context, this poem embodies the warmth and familiarity of snuggling in the bosom of a beloved family member to listen to stories of old. A brown-skinned child is rapt in his aunt’s stories of Black slaves working in the hot sun, walking in the dewy night, and singing sorrow songs near a mighty river. The child knows these stories are real, that his aunt lived these stories, and he is respectful as he listens in the quiet night. Hughes’s poetry strikingly articulates the stories as they “mingle themselves softly in the flow of old Aunt Sue’s voice.” This simple poem is juxtaposed with the strong visuals of Kelley’s bold and dark illustrations. Even in the soft embrace of his aunt, the boy can see she has lived a life of hard work and sacrifice. The “dark shadows that cross and recross” his aunt’s stories and the “sorrow songs” of the workers come though so tenderly despite the hard, black lines of the summer sun and the dust of an evening sky. The text would make a wonderful introduction to poetry for its brevity, but also for its inclination toward the visual. One can hear Aunt Sue’s flow of words, so reading this aloud would greatly enrich that connection. Kelley’s illustrations are a bold and striking depiction of the poem, but could also inspire discussion of how story and picture together deepen our understanding of history and, most importantly, culture.VERDICT A stellar combination of words and illustrations sure to inform and inspire children across a wide range of ages. A must-read. —School Library Journal
"Bring me your boots, you stompers and jumpers./ Bring me your leaves, you wind-rattled trees.” Who is narrating this divine glimpse of children, who are variously Asian, brown, and white, riotously clomping, skipping, and whirling through a rainy day? The puddle, of course. In atmosphere and dress, the watercolorlike illustrations strike an old-fashioned tone but adhere to the puddle’s perspective, offering surprising close-ups of a doggy’s curious face and leaves floating past. A solid ode to childhood’s passion of viewing a silky surface and destroying it. VERDICT A first purchase; joyful, economical, and exhilarating. —School Library Journal