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Reviews 2020

November 19, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day – Waa’aka’: The Bird Who Fell in Love with the Sun by Cindi M. Alvitre, ill. Carly Lake

Artfully rendered and magnificently produced, this creation tale is by turns beautiful and clever. A story told with plenty of thought and consideration.

November 12, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day – Mr. Invincible: Local Hero by Pascal Jousselin

Without a doubt, this is one of the most original books I’ve read for kids, teens, adults, you name it, in years. Incroyable? You don’t know the half of it.

November 6, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Review of the Day: King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender

I’m late to the party in celebrating this book, but now that I’m here, let’s dance until dawn! This is one book that kids and adults alike will read and never ever forget.

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More Recent Posts

Review of the Day: Sugar in Milk by Thrity Umrigar, ill. Khoa Le

October 29, 2020 by Betsy Bird

A book that manages that impossible task of combining child friendliness (a kid will want to reread it) with good writing (an ADULT will want to reread it – never a given), and beautiful art.

Review of the Day: The Talk, edited by Wade Hudson and Cheryl Willis Hudson

October 21, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Pitch perfect in tone and content, this is supposedly the book that will help all parents talk to their kids. In truth? This also is the book that will help KIDS talk to their parents. It’s a two-way street and everybody’s driving.

Review of the Day: The Girl and the Ghost by Hanna Alkaf

October 6, 2020 by Betsy Bird

A book that shows in the most eloquent way possible how family trauma lives on, from generation to generation, taking shape, forming us one way or another. The elements that make a great novel for children aren’t difficult to understand. Hanna Alkaf has laid them out for you.

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Review of the Day: A Thousand No’s by D.J. Corchin, ill. Dan Dougherty

October 1, 2020 by Betsy Bird

If you think the process of creation is sometimes painful and collaborative and ultimately fun, this book is the first that I’ve ever seen to express that idea. You want to get to yes? Then you gotta slog through no.

Review of the Day: I Wish by Toon Tellegen, ill. Ingrid Godon, translated by David Colmer

September 17, 2020 by Betsy Bird

I Wish isn’t going to sit quietly in a category. It’s the kind of book that would rather wander off and make up its own categories, expecting you to follow dutifully behind. And you will, because it is strange and wonderful and ultimately very very memorable. Can many other books out there say half as much?

Review of the Day: Planet Omar – Accidental Trouble Magnet by Zanib Mian, ill. Nasaya Mafaridik

September 11, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Let’s hand Omar to as many kinds as we can name. Because as far as I’m concerned, funny books that also prove to be smart and socially conscious (not to mention anti-racist) might help us get out of the mess this world is in.

Review of the Day: I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott, ill. Sydney Smith

August 27, 2020 by Betsy Bird

Deft poetic language pairs with the resonant watercolors of Sydney Smith to create a book that is more than a memoir and more than conveying a message. This is pain, turned into art, and written for young children. Incomparable.

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