Personal rating of 5 out of 5 stars
5 stars A gorgeous picture book with a powerful message. When the people in her life question where she’s really from, a little girl starts to question whether she belongs. She asks her wise abuelo for an answer. In beautifully illustrated spreads, he answers perfectly, asserting her belonging while also teaching her about various aspects of her…
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5 stars A delightful ghost story centered around friendship and growing up. This book is absolutely beautiful! I loved every moment of it. It is sweet, relatable, gut-wrenching, and heartwarming all rolled into one gorgeous package. The artwork is fantastic. I really enjoyed the cozy art style and Yee perfectly captures the emotions of her…
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5 stars So happy to see Prince and Knight back for another adventure! (See my review of the first book here.) A lovely story about acceptance, understanding, forgiveness, and love’s power to inspire and bring people together. As with the first book, the artwork is amazing. Great use of color and contrasting light and dark….
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5 stars A fantastic follow-up to Eyes that Kiss in the Corners (read my full review here). Joanna Ho and Dung Ho team up once again to create a lyrical story with gorgeous artwork on every page. This book celebrates the power of one’s eyes and their connection to family. Wonderful themes of love, looking to…
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5 stars A wonderful book with lush illustrations and a powerful message. Whether you have a name that’s deemed hard-to-pronounce by others or not, this is a great read and learning opportunity. At first, Mirha is excited for her first day of school. But when no one pronounces her name right, she feels unimportant. With…
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5 stars A fantastic follow-up to the first book. Wonderfully written with unforgettable characters. Same charm as the first book with additional characters (along with old favorites), new adventures, and new problems to solve. In this one, the Vanderbeekers forge new friendships, reunite with established friends, make some unexpected discoveries, and band together to beautify…
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5 stars Adapted from Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi‘s Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You A fantastic adaptation of Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You for a younger audience. This is such a great series to adapt for different age groups and the kids and teens version have both been amazing. One aspect that is especially fun about the…
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5 stars A fantastic non-history history book. Kendi and Reynolds join forces to create an informative, accessible, and empowering version of Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America for a younger audience. Kendi with excellent scholarship and research and Reynolds adapting that research into a format that will resonate with young readers….
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5 stars A touching story with exceptional artwork. Follow Finn as he builds a boat and sets out to find the place of his grandfather’s stories. Taking the trip they’d always talked about going on together, Finn sees fantastic sights, travels to remarkable places, and deals with the loss of his grandfather. The Fan Brothers…
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5 stars A beautifully-told journey of the struggle between two worlds, friendship, grief, and acceptance. I loved every page. Pulling from her own life experiences, LaRocca creates a truly fantastic story. This novel-in-verse strikes to the core. It perfectly captures the struggles of its main character. Though the book is relatively short, it covers so…
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