Personal rating of 4 out of 5 stars
by Marianne Celano, Marietta Collins, and Ann Hazzard Illustrated by Jennifer Zivoin 4 stars A nice resource to guide discussions of race, discrimination, and police brutality. The fictional story follows conversations between two families, one White and one Black. These conversations bring up various issues such as racism, discrimination, fairness, and slavery, demonstrating the different…
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4 stars Received a free digital copy from the author in exchange for an honest review. I was immediately engrossed by this collection of powerful women risking it all the save their worlds. Rich fantasy with splendid storytelling. Each tale features a fierce woman doing whatever it takes to save the world and the people…
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4 stars A powerful read about friendship and family with an emphasis on the continuous learning and action against prejudice, specifically racism and ableism. Nicely written. This book tackles quite a bit. From police shootings and microaggressions, to dissuading Deaf individuals from using ASL, to family making (intentional and unintentional) racist remarks. While it is…
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Illustrated by Jean and Mou-sien Tseng 4 stars A beautiful reimagining of the Han tale of The Seven Brothers. This serves as a nice alternative to The Five Chinese Brothers with detailed illustrations and a full color pallet. In this version, the seven brothers learn that Emperor Ch’in Shih Huang is making people work day and night…
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by Shauna J. Grant 4 stars Another adorable, sweet adventure with Mimi and Penelope. In this one, Mimi wakes up with the Blahs. Her pigtails won’t sit right, she doesn’t want her favorite breakfast, she can’t fully enjoy fun things, and she just feels blah. But with the help of her friends, Mimi can overcome…
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4 stars An adorable story about a sleepover invaded by the Yawns. Two best friends have a plan to stay up all night to complete their list of fun things. But some uninvited guests show up to disrupt their plans. I loved the physical representations of the Yawns and other sleep-related elements. The illustrations were…
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4 stars A nice introduction to African myths and legends. There are 11 stories included in total that range from 1 to 4 pages. Photographs of various elements associated with the story are paired with each. I especially liked that the book isn’t just a collection of stories with no context. After each story, there…
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Illustrated by Pete Oswald 4 stars Such a cute picture book. Perfect for read-alouds. Simply put, Sleepy Sheepy does not want to do to bed. He does everything he can to put off bedtime until finally he has to admit he’s a little bit sleepy. Parents can definitely relate to Ma Sheepy and Pa Sheepy…
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by Alejandra Green and Fanny Rodriguez 4 stars Another fun adventure into the world of Nothing. This one starts out the same as the first. Nathan wakes up in a strange place. But this time, he’s on a mission. He must reunite with his friends, find the truth about Lerina, and stop Stryx. With Nothing…
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Illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight 4 stars A delightful picture book centered on hope, community, and recovery. River is excited for powwow day. But still recovering from an unnamed illness, she is too tired to join in the dancing. Finding strength in the drum beat and the remembering the meaning of the dances, River feels the…
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