(2) 4-6 Blue Stars series. Illustrated by Molly Murakami. In their first graphic novel collaboration, Magoon and Smith introduce readers to cousins Riley Halfmoon and Maya Dawn. Riley is used to being surrounded by her Muscogee cousins and aunties. Maya is an only child and lives in Japan with her parents, who are on active duty. The girls both move to Urbanopolis to live with their paternal grandmother when Riley's mom gets a new job and Maya's parents get a new assignment. At first they find sharing a room to be a difficult adjustment; when school starts, the two continue on their separate paths until they realize the vice principal plans to cut afterschool programs for more detention space. The girls work together to expose his plans and to "be the stars" their grandmother wants them to be. The story and illustrations are a wonderful representation of a multiracial (the cousins' paternal grandmother is Black; Riley's mom is Muscogee, and Maya's mother is white) and multigenerational family. The graphic novel format, with varied panel layouts in the digital illustrations, helps create a fast-paced adventure middle-grade and middle-school readers will appreciate.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Leanne Hatch. "Not-so-good" thoughts flutter and flap around a child's head at bedtime: "What if there are spiders in the house? What if I have a scary dream when I fall asleep?" Mom senses these worries and offers a soothing concept: "'Thoughts are like birds,' she says. 'Some fly away quickly...but others build nests in our heads.'" Smith (known for her adult poetry and memoir) thoughtfully uses this comparison to encourage readers not to simply ignore their negative emotions but rather to counter them with happy memories that these birds can use to "build nests." The specific, affection-infused memories on which the narrator and Mom reflect -- catching fish in a creek, eating banana bread still warm from the oven -- acknowledge the joy and peace that readers of all ages can find in simple, everyday occurrences. Hatch's use of hand-painted textures in the digital art enriches the book's comforting atmosphere, letting warm colors increasingly brighten the at-first gray birds that represent the narrator's worried thoughts. This book serves as an accessible and empathetic look at the impact that anxiety has on children, while celebrating the loving bond between a mother and child as they choose to face their fears together.

Reviewer: Ed Spicer | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) YA Smith (The Blossom and the Firefly, rev. 3/20) and Wein (Stateless, rev. 3/23) introduce readers to the Black men and women who fought to desegregate aviation. The book opens in 1919 with fifteen-year-old Cornelius Coffey attempting to take his first plane ride at an air show in Nebraska. The pilot reluctantly takes the young Black man up and tries to discourage him with daredevil antics -- but Coffey loves it and knows he wants to fly. Fast forward: Coffey meets Johnny Robinson, a Black mechanic who also longs to be a pilot. The two move to Chicago and apply to the Curtiss-Wright School of Aviation. They are accepted -- but then not allowed to enroll after the school finds out they are Black. Following much struggle, Coffey and Robinson are admitted in 1929 and complete their course. With two other young Black aspiring pilots, Janet Harmon Bragg and Willa Brown, they open an aviation school for Black students. Along with the experiences of each individual pilot, there is also a thorough discussion of the historical context surrounding them, including the Great Depression and WWII. Photographs of Coffey, Robinson, Harmon Bragg, and Brown appear throughout the text. An authors' note explains the research process, and source notes are provided for this thorough and absorbingly written history of the early days of aviation.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2024

(2) K-3 Philippa, a pheasant, is "fed up with being nearly knocked pancake-flat" by cars whenever she crosses the road to eat blackberries by the forest where she lives. When her note to the local (human) mayor receives no response, she's inspired by the village's school crossing guard to make herself a yellow vest and a sign to stop vehicles so other critters can safely cross. Fascinated villagers share the brave bird's story in the news, but the mayor isn't impressed--until one night when his cat, Darling Treasure, goes missing and Philippa finds her. As the book's alliterative title suggests, Philippa finally receives a proper crossing guard uniform, and the other animals paint a crosswalk for her. Smith's appealing and uplifting story shows how one individual, even a small one, can make a difference. In a pleasing style reminiscent of G. Brian Karas (The Little Library, rev. 5/21, and others), the mixed-media illustrations in mainly browns and greens depict an idyllic countryside setting. The skillful variation of spot art, full-page illustrations, and spreads helps build excitement, from Philippa's repeated and risky forays out into the road to the search for Darling Treasure, while the matter-of-fact narration and tone reassure readers.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Leo Espinosa. Smith introduces African American cycling legend Marshall Walter "Major" Taylor (1878-1932) to a new generation. Beginning with prose and then switching gears to (sometimes-clunky) verse, the story focalizes Taylor's remarkable performance in the grueling Six-Day Bicycle Race at Madison Square Garden when he was eighteen years old. Through chronological flashbacks, readers meet an even younger Taylor performing bicycle stunts in front the bike store where he worked and winning amateur races in jaw-dropping fashion. Smith does not soft-pedal the challenges Taylor faced while breaking the color barrier in sports. Espinosa's cinematic digital illustrations in a palette of largely neutral colors use dynamic visual perspectives to propel the story with drama and charged emotion. Back matter includes a timeline, bibliography, and supplementary profile of Taylor.

Reviewer: Summer Edward

(2) YA Theater kid Hughie Wolfe, one of the few Indigenous students at his high school, is disappointed when the fall play is cancelled. He sets his sights on a new project: a haunted house fundraiser at the rural crossroads, a location plagued by rumors of an Indigenous ghost. Hughie is excited to volunteer until he learns that the organizer wants to feature Indigenous stereotypes, including an "Indian Maiden" and an "Indian burial ground" as the main attractions. To make matters worse, there are reports of a creepy figure terrorizing brown girls at the crossroads, scaring them as they walk to their vehicles at night. As Hughie considers how to speak up about bigotry against Indigenous people, he and his friends investigate the stalker and discover that some rumors are based in truth. The story (set in the same universe as the realistic Rain Is Not My Indian Name and Hearts Unbroken, rev. 11/18) adeptly centers important conversations about the racism Indigenous youth face; the plight of missing Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit people; and the lack of police, media, and governmental support in searching for them. This eerie cross-genre novel will entice readers in search of spooky and truthful storytelling.

Reviewer: S. R. Toliver | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(2) PS Design by Molly Leach. Smith (A Gift for Nana, rev. 5/22) again explores a world of friendly monsters, talking animals, and personified inanimate objects, here celebrating childlike curiosity, wonder, and appreciation. The open-hearted Stickler, a troll-like creature with sticks for hair and an ever-shifting number of googly eyeballs, sees its friend Crow with its head stuck in a can and mistakes it for an alien visitor. Stickler takes it upon itself to share with Crow "the wonders of my planet." Morning sunbeams, waving waves, twirling maple seeds, and other seemingly ordinary features of nature are presented to Crow with reverence. Smith's mixed-media illustrations vary in color, texture, and medium between scenarios, from a fluid splatter-splash effect for water to sharply three-dimensional craggy textures for rocks. Language and text size and placement are skillfully employed throughout, both through Leach's expressive design and Smith's quippy humor. It is only after a full day of experiencing natural wonders that the can is removed from Crow's head, but instead of discontent, Crow reveals that Stickler's perspective "did open my eyes." Additional flourishes,­ such as day and night endpapers and drop-cap lettering (made from sticks, of course), further extend and enrich the reading experience. Smith continues to explore big ideas through oddball characters;­ as Stickler says, "If you think about it, our world has some pretty weird stuff in it!"

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(3) K-3 Smith's testimony of his artivism journey illuminates the heart of an artistic Black boy desperate to make the world a better place. The text reflects on the concept of "artivism" and what it can achieve, as well as the character traits required to be an artivist. The artivist is many things, readers learn — an ally in the fight against injustice, a memory keeper, visionary, and more. With their studied rawness and striking visual metaphors, Smith's painterly digital illustrations are concept art-esque, and depict the boy ten toes down — wielding his paintbrush to peacefully protest gun violence, environmental degradation, housing inequality, and other societal transgressions. An image showing a mural, painted by the boy, becoming a viral sensation highlights the tectonic, auxiliary role of social media in contemporary resistance art movements.

Reviewer: Summer Edward

(1) K-3 A mother and child lie in bed, sharing­ memories in the dark. Changes in font color and placement guide readers in knowing who is speaking at which moment. First, the mother asks "Do you remember..." about a picnic they once had. The child then recalls a first bicycle, and the mother, a rainstorm. All memories include the two of them and the child's father. But the next memory involves departing their home, the father staying behind after gently handing over a teddy bear. In one wordless spread, Smith (My Baba's Garden, rev. 3/23) shows readers what mother and child see: a room filled with boxes. The child asks if they can "make this a memory, too...just you and me," ending with, "We knew we were going to be just fine." Why the father is not there is for readers to infer. Marked by beguiling light and shadow (the spreads in which the two lie in bed are marked by dark shades that grow progressively lighter as the story proceeds and light fills their room), the art captures the past in small vignettes, sometimes blurred with the passing of time and sometimes quite vivid—like memories themselves. How do we make memories? Which parts of them matter? This hushed and deeply tender story will spark many conversations.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Becca Stadtlander. On page one of this true story behind the making of the 1942 Caldecott-winning Make Way for Ducklings, readers see legendary author-illustrator McCloskey hard at work in his studio. After completing his first children's book (Lentil, 1940), he wants to put mallard ducks into a story but struggles to draw them correctly. He brings home a box of "very alive (and very LOUD)" ducklings after deciding that he needs "live models." They wreak havoc, but he "was willing to do whatever it took to make these drawings perfect," and in the end, the drawings were "absolutely top-notch!" Smith emphasizes her subject's determination (respectfully referring to him throughout as "Mr. McCloskey"), with the spreads depicting the ducks' "terrible mess" and "infernal quacking" being sure to delight young readers. Stadtlander captures it all in thickly textured gouache and colored-pencil illustrations. Back matter includes a note from McCloskey's daughter Jane; information about publisher Viking's May Massee, the exacting editor depicted in the story; a timeline; and more. Children's literature aficionados will note mention of McCloskey's roommate (who was, in point of fact, illustrator Marc Simont) and will also note the story's absence of red wine, which he and Simont fed the ducks to slow them down for easier drawing. This is the children's version of that tale, after all--and a satisfying one at that.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2022

(2) K-3 Design by Molly Leach. This tenderhearted adventure follows young Rabbit through a series of fanciful encounters in search of the "perfect gift" for his grandmother. Rabbit is unsure of what to get Nana until a crow shares the location of a just-right present. As Rabbit embarks upon his journey, he gets gift suggestions from the moon, a multi-eyed forest creature, and a "big big fish," all of which Rabbit politely dismisses. Tension builds when Rabbit provokes a moody volcano and sneezes into a spooky cave, experiences that only reinforce the youngster's affection for his grandmother ("Nana would probably say a comforting something or other about now"). The quest ends at the top of a steep peak capped with a single carrot; Rabbit undermines his own success, however, when he stops on the way back for a nibble of the very present he'd worked so hard to find. The half-eaten carrot still proves to be the perfect gift for Nana "because it came from him." Themes of familial love, appreciation, and gratitude resist saccharine cliché thanks in large part to Smith's subversive sense of humor and offbeat writing. The mixed-media illustrations are textured and atmospheric, with rich, cool greens, browns, and blues--visually punctuated by a spectacular double-page spread of an erupting volcano in vibrant magenta and yellow. A wide horizontal trim size emphasizes the length of Rabbit's journey, while Leach's distinctive book design shines through thoughtful text layouts that lead readers effortlessly across the pages.

Reviewer: Patrick Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2022

(2) 4-6 On the morning of his thirteenth birthday, Henry Carter declines his father's invitation to go with him to the zoo where he works. While Dad is gone, Henry notices something odd: "It was like a lightning strike without the sound or the bolt, or brightening. Like God was snapping a photo using the flash of his celestial camera." Uncle Edgar suggests that it was an electromagnetic pulse of some sort. Then a plane falls from the sky, the power goes out, cars stop running, and Henry's new smartphone dies. A drive to the zoo in Uncle Edgar's old, pre-electronics Cadillac yields escaped gorillas, leopards, giraffes, and a rampaging elephant--but no father. Days and weeks pass, and life becomes a struggle for survival. The world outside grows desperate and chaotic, and Henry's family must build a wall of abandoned cars to protect their farm. Smith's gripping novel offers intricate world-building, a companionable protagonist in Henry, abundant action, plentiful dialogue, character-deepening journal entries, and a ghostly voice in Henry's head. Perhaps it's a sign of our times that a tale of near-doom seems perfectly believable.

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2023

(1) YA Illustrated by Dawud Anyabwile. Smith's graphic memoir (co-authored with multi-awardee Barnes) provides context for the iconic 1968 image of two Black Olympians, gold medalist Smith and bronze medalist John Carlos, standing on the medal podium, heads bowed and fists raised. Smith's ­sharecropper parents had moved the family from Texas to California's Central Valley as part of the Great Migration's second wave when he was a child. It was here that sixth grader Tommie beat his nimble-footed older sister Sally (along with the fastest boy in the seventh grade) in a race that "changed everything." His athletic talents earned him a scholarship to San Jose State, where he arrived "oblivious to the extent" of the civil rights movement. But as a Black student on an overwhelmingly white campus during the tumultuous 1960s, Smith's growing awareness of--and involvement in--the fight for racial equality led him to speak out. At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Smith won gold in the 200 meters; along with Carlos, he staged a protest whose reverberations are still felt today. Anyabwile conveys great emotion in his fluid black-and-white art, which pairs well with the conversational first-person text. The climactic race acts as a narrative through line alongside Smith's life story. The book closes by making direct connections between Smith's actions and modern-day protests by athletes (such as Eric Reid and Colin Kaepernick), with a final shot of a triumphant older Smith, standing under an illuminated set of Olympic rings, with fist defiantly raised. "I hold no regrets...if I could hoist that fist up to the heavens one more time...I'd do it again."

Reviewer: Sam Bloom | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2022

(2) 4-6 In her reimagining of a classic, Smith gives readers a decidedly modern look at the magic, adventure, and mystery of Barrie's Peter Pan, without its derogatory depictions of Indigenous people. The story opens in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where stepsisters Wendy Darling and Lily Roberts are weathering the fallout of their parents' marital crisis and conflicting professional ambitions. Ms. Roberts-Darling is Muscogee Creek and is committed to the economic development of her tribe. She'd offered to officially adopt Wendy, but Wendy balked at the idea in deference to her late mother and is heading to New York for the summer with her English financier father. The rifts between the once-inseparable stepsisters and between their parents are not the only ones. Peter Pan (who shows up at the Roberts-Darling residence on a mission to find a storyteller to bring to Neverland) has been deserted by his shadow, who is sick and tired of the boy's bullying ways. With a generous dose of fairy dust, Wendy and her little brother Michael are whisked off to Neverland, and Lily follows to try to rescue them. In that would-be paradise, there are environmental and humanitarian disasters looming all around, and even the satisfaction of finding a longed-for storyteller is short-lived once Wendy announces that she's about to turn thirteen and so, by Peter's own decree, must be fed to a giant crocodile. This smart and engaging middle-grade novel intertwines bits of Barrie's language, some strong and resourceful Indigenous kids, and themes of the importance of family and the powerful bonds of sisterhood into an original and wholly satisfying bit of magic.

Reviewer: Luann Toth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2021

(2) YA This tenderhearted graphic novel explores the traumatic aftermath of gun violence experienced by a teen, Manuel, who had witnessed his teacher being threatened at gunpoint. On his road to recovery, he slips into panic attacks brought on by dreams, video games, and random images from the scene of the crime. While hanging out at a farm with his friends Caysha and Sebastian to work on a group project for art class, Manuel copes by using photography as a form of therapy; snapshots from his camera phone deliver parts of the visual narrative. Intermittent flashbacks reveal disturbing details from the incident, much like fragmented memories that lie buried until they rise to the surface. Scenic rural landscapes infused with shades of deep blue and rosy pink create a ­calming mood and tone. Vivid panels rendered in black, gray, and white magnify Manuel's increasingly intense disassociating episodes as the plot progresses before ­coming to some resolution and healing. This moving story touches on themes of friendship, ­coping, and self-discovery amidst a haunting experience.

Reviewer: Jerry Dear | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) YA Illustrated by Mat Hunkin. At age twelve, Sofia is beyond excited when the first McDonald's restaurant opens in New Zealand, and she records her delight in her diary. Over the next six months, she uses the diary to record family mishaps, her love of go-go boots, and her growing awareness of politics and human rights abuses. It is 1976, and the New Zealand government is cracking down on "overstayers," immigrants who came for work at the encouragement of the government but stayed after their visas expired. Sofia's dad is Samoan and her mom Pākehā (a New Zealander of European descent), but it is not until her older brother joins the Polynesian Panthers that Sofia learns about rights abuses targeting Indigenous families. Early in the novel, Sofia writes a school assignment, a speech about herself, and she is selected to represent the school in a district-wide contest; the novel closes as Sofia gives her competition speech and, through it, spells out her own growth as an activist. New Zealand history and the Dawn Raids will be unfamiliar to most American readers, so the diary format works well--Sofia writes about what she learns as she learns it, providing readers with the necessary historical information. Smith, of Pacific Islander, Scottish, and Irish heritage, authentically describes the culture of a mixed-race New Zealander, filling the book with details of language, customs, and food. Hunkin's lively line drawings throughout help set the novel in the 1970s (would contemporary readers be able to picture the much-coveted go-go boots without art?).

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(2) 4-6 Eleven-year-old June Jackson is used to keeping the peace and making everyone around her happy, even if that means telling white lies every now and then. Why make waves when you can just tell your friends how much you like their shoes, eat foods you don't enjoy, and assure your father that you'd love to attend his college alma mater? Now in her first year of middle school, June has every intention of continuing that behavior--until she comes face to face with her very own fairy godmother. Her godmother--a rather uncoordinated fairy named Victoria--gifts June with a "superpower": to tell the truth, no matter what. Horrified at the prospect, June does her best to avoid all conversation and begins a blog as an outlet to confess her thoughts without hurting anyone's feelings. As the pressures of middle school spill over, June is finally forced to share some uncomfortable truths with her friends and family; and while it causes just as much havoc as June had anticipated, it also results in unexpected surprises. June's stream-of-consciousness thoughts about how her parents will react to her honesty are melodramatic to the point of humor, and perfectly relatable to perfectionists/people-pleasers. Those who identify with the themes of self-acceptance in Varian Johnson's Twins (rev. 11/20) will connect with June's plight.

Reviewer: Eboni Njoku | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021

(2) 4-6 Toon Graphic series. Helping to fill in some of the gaps of our knowledge of the American West, Smith's informative and celebratory comic spotlights three little-known African American figures who helped shape its history. Frontier mail carrier, restaurateur, crack shot, utterly unique; there were many ways to describe the larger-than-life Mary Fields, a.k.a. Stagecoach Mary, the subject of the book's first chapter. Fields epitomized the can-do attitude and versatility that made this time period so rich for storytelling (and ­mythologizing). Accomplished lawman Bass Reeves, the subject of the second chapter, may be America's most well-known Black cowboy. Smith opts to depict a single episode from Reeves's career, one that highlights his ingenuity and wit, as the deputy marshal fools and captures two fugitives. The third chapter features cowboy Bob Lemmons, who pioneered a novel and humane approach to wrangling wild mustang herds of the Texas plains. Well-designed panels and crisp, clean lines and colors allow Smith to present realistic depictions of almost fantastical actions. Occasional full-page illustrations help punctuate the scenes. A note by Kadir Nelson begins the book, and eight pages of substantial and illuminating back ­matter--including photographs, a timeline, and considerable historical background on the experience of Black Americans in the West--are appended. Pair with picture-book biographies Fearless Mary by Tami Charles and Bad News for Outlaws (rev. 11/09) by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson.

Reviewer: Eric Carpenter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020

(2) YA In the fourth (and final) installment about Peak ­Marcello (beginning with Peak, rev. 5/07), the ­sixteen-year-old has survived an avalanche on Hkakabo Razi and descends into the Tibetan jungle, pursued by Captain Shek of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. Peak, his world-famous mountain-climbing father, and their longtime "mystery monk" friend Zopa hole up in a Buddhist monastery hidden away from the world in the Tsangpo River gorge. The fast pace of the adventure takes a meditative turn here, and the experience changes Peak. By story's end, he seems more interested in following Zopa's advice to "go out and do good things" than to continue scaling skyscrapers and mountains. This volume stands alone but is enriched by the prior entries, as Peak ponders a future seemingly without climbing: "The climbing itch was gone. I had left it somewhere on the slopes of the Land of Dawn-Lit Mountains."

Reviewer: Dean Schneider | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(1) YA Almost buried alive in a bombing by Allied forces in 1945 Chiran, Japan, fifteen-year-old Hana feels as though she is already dead, just going through the motions. Since the bombing, girls her age have been assigned to the Nadeshiko unit; their job is to care for and send the tokkō (special attack pilots, or kamikaze) off to their deaths. In an alternating narrative, seventeen-year-old Taro is prepared to die for Japan, his death bringing more honor and glory for his family than his skill in playing the violin, or his life, ever could. When their paths cross, Taro's violin-playing revives Hana's appreciation for life as well as joyful memories, especially of her koto-playing father, now fighting in the war. When their connection deepens into love, Taro wonders if his feelings will jeopardize his resolve in completing his mission, while Hana's heart breaks knowing Taro's seemingly inevitable fate. Through meticulous research, Smith immerses her readers in a war narrative not often told to American readers, as well as a tension-filled love story. Smith does not shy away from the horrific consequences of war and its victims; the novel encompasses comfort women; Asian countries affected by Japanese imperialism; and ritual suicide. The imagery of the title evokes the Japanese code of bushido and the fleeting beauty of existence. A map, glossary, author's note, and bibliography of both Japanese history in World War II and contemporary Japanese culture are appended.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2020