Enlightening and encouraging.
This paean to Earth sketches a rudimentary history of its changes right into the present climate crisis, suggesting a first step toward biodiversity preservation.
“Once there was a little bit of land.” The light-skinned child on the cover reappears inside, contentedly watering plants. Even in this first illustration, readers observe layers beneath the soil, significantly housing fossils. Simple, lyrical text swiftly moves from describing the child’s bit of land to discussing more generally how the land might have appeared in earlier eras. The crucial point is made that, despite constant changes, “The land provided for all the life that lived upon it.” Dramatic double-page spreads stress that even naturally caused fires do not thwart balanced ecosystems. Dynamic gouache watercolors—ending with a gray, urban world literally turned upside down by human-caused habitat destruction and fossil fuel use—make the case for taking note immediately. A trio of racially diverse children are shown noticing even as adults rush by at the brink of catastrophe. Just at that brink, the text asks readers if they “can hear the little bit of land talking to you?”—then gently prods them, via a series of uplifting scenarios, into taking care of it. The enthralling artwork is reminiscent of the Golden Books illustrated by Tibor Gergely, including vivid colors, an impeccable sense of composition, and slightly comical renderings of animals and people. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Enlightening and encouraging. (author’s note, glossary, additional facts, resources) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 11, 2023
ISBN: 978-0-316-30176-3
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
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