(3) K-3 Adventures of Trim series. Illustrated by Kristy Caldwell. Ship’s cat Trim (Trim Sets Sail) is frightened when he hears there’s a storm approaching, but his friends on the ship teach him how to prepare. Trim learns how to, for example, “reef the sails,” “batten down the hatches,” and “help someone else stay safe”; once everything is done, Trim and a new friend weather the storm safely. The gentle text and friendly mixed-media illustrations show the urgency of the storm but keep it from feeling scary; an endnote explains that Trim is based on a real cat from the early 1800s.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Kerns

(2) PS Illustrated by Kenard Pak. In this quiet cumulative story, everyone -- and everything -- wakens, one by one. Who has woken the girl, the cat, the dog, the rabbit, the tree, the air, and the cloud? The reader and protagonist seek answers together, prodded by Hopkinson's hushed prose and direct address and Pak's full-bleed illustrations that switch between placing the reader in the protagonist's point of view and offering an omniscient perspective. Pak renders nighttime digitally in shades of purple and black with deep green landscapes and glowing accents that spotlight the sleep-depriving suspects. Throughout, words and art harmoniously convey nighttime magic. When Hopkinson writes, "Now a sweet ribbon of breath curls around you too," Pak depicts the girl grasping a wispy, textured "breath" of air. Drama builds with the refrain, "Was it you?" on cleverly designed spreads interspersed between the nocturnal scenes. Moonlight begins as a small corner of yellow in the bottom right of an otherwise solid purple spread, then progressively expands up and toward the verso on the next five pages, until finally, yellow moonlight overtakes the purple darkness. And then, in reverse order of their awakening, everyone returns to sleep as moonlight follows the girl upstairs and literally blankets her and her cat. In the final illustration, an all-yellow double-page spread reads, "Who has woken the moon?" A memorable celebration of nighttime activity and moonlit slumber.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) YA Hopkinson (We Must Not Forget: Holocaust Stories of Survival and Resistance, rev. 3/21) delivers another highly engaging nonfiction account of World War II. After giving some background information on the colonization of the Philippines, the movement for independence, and the continued U.S. military presence leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor, the author turns to Japan's attack on key military bases in the Philippines, leaving the island nation vulnerable to invasion. After a valiant effort for several months, despite severe shortages of food, water, and supplies, the combined American and Philippine forces surrendered. Next came the infamous Bataan Death March, which saw fatigued and emaciated soldiers forced to march dozens of miles to Camp O'Donnell, the first of several prison camps the Allied soldiers endured. The fatality rate for these camps was as high as forty percent, and those who survived (eventually to be liberated by General MacArthur) were forever changed. Hopkinson has amassed an impressive array of primary-source accounts--ranging from those by nurses and doctors to soldiers and guerrilla fighters to journalists and activists--and woven them together into a cohesive whole. The narrative is complemented by numerous sidebars that often take up whole pages and include digressions into various related topics; black-and-white photographs; and maps. An extensive bibliography of print and digital resources, source notes, and an index are appended.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. A fairly standard retelling changes course quickly when Cinderella storms out of the ball ("What a disaster!") declaring that the prince is a snob and her feet are killing her ("Seriously? Glass high heels?"). As her horse turns back into a mouse and the pumpkin coach cracks open on the road, "Ella" blithely kneels on the ground, picks out the seeds, and pockets them. "I'll find my own destiny, thank you very much"--and she does, with mouse pal Fred witness to it all. Zelinsky's humorous illustrations have fun with Cinderella's clown-like stepfamily and their ridiculous attempts to squeeze large feet into the tiny glass slipper. Ella, on the other hand, is depicted as a down-to-earth pumpkin farmer who soon finds true love with another like-minded farmer. The two women (yaaas!) marry and move to a small farm, where they grow spectacular pumpkins, in a truly satisfying fairy-tale ending. Hopkinson's enhanced retelling even adds a small pourquoi tale: "And that, dear readers, is the story of how fairytale pumpkins got their name." Sorry, Prince Charming--this revisionist tale ends quite happily without you.

Reviewer: Jennifer M. Brabander | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Kate Gardiner. Taking its title from Eleanor Roosevelt's 1958 remarks delivered at the United Nations about the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights she had helped champion ("Where, after all, do universal rights begin? In small places, close to home"), this book informs young children of their own rights and responsibilities as humans. Hopkinson's text (also inspired by that Declaration) uses active first-person language: "I am free to choose what I think and believe. And it's up to me to listen and respect how others think and believe too." Each assertion is direct and powerful, with sections starting with "Me" and then expanding to "My School and Community" and on to "My Country and World." Gardiner's gouache and pencil illustrations, assembled digitally, have a soft color palette with pops of yellow and tomato red and demonstrate human rights playing out across a variety of communities. Front and back matter pay tribute to Roosevelt's work, including resources for learning more about her and the United Nations. This elegantly and accessibly presented book empowers the youngest humans and their accompanying grownups to recognize their rights and safeguard them by extending them equally to others.

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

(2) 4-6 Hopkinson (Courage & Defiance, rev. 11/15; Dive!, rev. 9/16; and others) continues to build an impressive body of work about World War II with these accounts of children and their families caught up in the Holocaust in Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Poland. "To Give the Dead a Voice" is her theme, as she weaves a rich third-person narrative with numerous first-person accounts. There's Eva Lauffer and Martin Deutschkron hiding in Berlin "under the noses of the Nazis," Max Liebmann escaping over the mountains to Switzerland aided by a young French boy, and Paula Burger and her brother Isaac hiding in rain barrels and escaping the Novogrudek ghetto with the help of a Polish farmer and the Bielski Partisans. Hopkinson has created a rich resource for teachers, librarians, and students--an effective melding of narratives; well-selected black-and-white photographs with informative captions; maps; and especially useful "Look, Listen, Remember" sidebars that provide links to interviews with many of the survivors. Extensive back matter includes a glossary, a timeline, and "Museum Websites and Online Resources." The source notes demonstrate the thorough research underlying the volume.

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

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Hadley Hooper. In an inviting second-person, present-tense voice, Hopkinson (Butterflies Belong Here, rev. 1/21; We Must Not Forget, rev. 3/21) captures a writer's struggle to kick-start a narrative: "You arrive with a pencil or two" as well as "all the invisible things that make you...you." Hooper (Two Brothers, Four Hands, rev. 3/19; The Elephants Come Home, rev. 7/21) depicts a child who comes in from the snow to a cozy interior and promptly sits down at a table by the window to write--but nothing comes. Frustrated, the child falls prey to distractions (reading favorite books, chomping on cookies). Suddenly, from the window the child spots a chickadee, determinedly working to feed itself by plucking seeds from a feeder. The writer, feeling encouraged, understands that it's time to return to the empty page. Just as the bird patiently worked seed by seed, with great concentration, writers must start by focusing on merely "one word. And then another." Hooper's illustrations in a wintry palette of cool blues capture the child's lively facial expressions and ever-changing body language. In one striking spread, she brings readers an inverted view of the chickadee; it hangs upside down from the feeder, but we see it right-side up, so the image of the child watching from the window is flipped. Hopkinson's story about a story, which closes with a writing prompt (about a chickadee, no less) is genuinely inspiring, a tutorial on writer's block that never patronizes the child readers at whom it's aimed.

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

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Kristy Caldwell. Not only was workers' rights advocate and public servant Frances Perkins (1880–1965) the first woman to serve in a presidential cabinet, she also improved the welfare of men, women, and children in the U.S. for generations. Over the course of her career, she fought tirelessly to increase workplace safety, reduce working hours, establish a minimum wage and unemployment insurance, and, most notably during her tenure as FDR's Secretary of Labor, institute our system of Social Security. Hopkinson uses Social Security as a framing device, beginning the text by posing two questions to modern readers ("How many years will it be until you turn sixty-two?" and "What year will that be?") and ending with a "Thanks, Frances!" In between, ­Hopkinson provides a broad overview of her subject's life, with the picture-book biography mostly highlighting a few seminal events that shaped Perkins's work ethic and determination. Caldwell's realistically drawn digital illustrations feature circular vignettes that occasionally depict additional accomplishments not covered in the text. The pastel color palette featuring teal and rose gold has an old-­fashioned vibe, enhanced by period details. Back matter includes an author's note, a reading list, a bibliography, and source notes. ­Follow up with Kathleen Krull's more thorough account for slightly older readers, The Only Woman in the Photo (rev. 3/20), illustrated by Alexandra Bye.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2020

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Meilo So. A young monarch butterfly enthusiast recounts her first year in a new school in a new country, where she "didn't like to stand out or be noticed" as she was learning English and becoming familiar with a new community. Through the seasons, as the girl gains confidence in her language skills, and with encouragement from the school librarian, she deepens her knowledge about butterfly science. The girl alternates between sharing her own story and presenting factual details about butterfly migration, life cycles, feeding habits, and alarming declines in the monarch population. The creative illustrations parallel the shifts in tone, with scientific information presented as if on the pages of a textbook, in contrast to glowing illustrations of an idyllic neighborhood filled with people, colorful buildings, and a community garden. The girl comes into her own in a triumphant class presentation on the monarch butterfly, where her plan to build a monarch way station is eagerly adopted by her schoolmates and community. "Once, I tried to hide. But a caterpillar never stays the same for long...It emerges as something new, unexpected, surprising. Just like me." Readers inspired by the girl's activism can find additional resources on monarchs and environmental activism in the book's closing pages.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2021

(2) YA In 1944 London, thirteen-year-old Bertie Bradshaw finds himself in the middle of espionage and intrigue, racing against the clock to unmask a Nazi double agent before WWII's top-secret D-Day operation commences. With red herrings, ciphers to decode, a subplot about a Jewish refugee, and cameos by real-life historical figures, there's never a dull moment. Back matter includes a "roster of terms, events, and historical figures" and solutions to the ciphers.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2019

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Don Tate. Hopkinson's inspiring story explains how young Carter G. Woodson (1875–1950) read the newspaper to his father and fellow coal miners. Their desire to be informed citizens, plus a challenge from his Harvard professor, led Woodson to later establish Negro History Week, predecessor to Black History Month. Tate's engaging mixed-media illustrations and endpaper drawings include portraits of Black leaders throughout history. Timeline, websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Monique Harris

(2) YA Focusing on the Utah and Omaha beach landings, Hopkinson employs her signature kaleidoscopic style--synthesizing complex events into a compelling narrative arc, and sampling myriad voices to add texture and color to the story while never losing sight of the bigger picture. Short chapters are loosely organized into a series of briefings (exposition of information) and dispatches (first-person accounts), and black-and-white photographs appear throughout. Timeline. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2018

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Qin Leng. Hopkinson's picture book biography has a narrow focus: Jane Austen's mostly uneventful life was spent observing others, and she combined this knowledge with her love of reading--and her father's gift of a mahogany writing box--to pursue an extraordinary writing career. Accompanying Hopkinson's pithy text are Leng's loose, delicate, ink and watercolor illustrations, which fittingly accentuate Jane's youthfulness and the playfulness of her writing. Timeline, websites. Bib.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2018

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter. A young woman's thank-you letter reflects on the wisdom and patience her second-grade teacher demonstrated during a difficult, and important, year in her childhood. Pen-and-ink and digital illustrations use color and contrast to draw attention to the endlessly curious girl, whose impulsive and occasionally "exasperating" behavior dominates the classroom. It's a loving and realistic portrayal of a student-teacher relationship.

Reviewer: Pam Yosca

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Giselle Potter. In Hopkinson's admittedly "made-up tale" based on the female author of American Cookery, the first American cookbook, orphan Amelia Simmons learns to cook from a Patriot townswoman and goes on to bake thirteen cakes served at Washington's inauguration. Entertaining--and informative of Revolutionary-era domesticity--the charming story pairs well with Potter's flattened folk art in watercolor and ink. A historical author's note is appended. Websites.

Reviewer: Christina Dorr

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Meilo So. Many newly hatched loggerhead turtles die when house lights lead them away from the ocean. For a community action project, Viv and her summer-school classmates follow five clearly outlined steps and ask beachfront vacationers to turn off their lights. The strong narrative culminates with a moonlit mass turtle hatching, reverently depicted in quiet blue and brown watercolors. Websites.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2016

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Charlotte Voake. Young Beatrix borrows a neighbor's pet, and the guinea pig dies after ingesting string, paste, and paper. Both a cautionary tale and an introduction to the famous children's book creator, this quirky, charming tale (based on a true incident with some invented dialogue) is told with loose watercolors and a direct, inviting writing style. An author's note includes archival photographs.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth

(3) 4-6 In this picaresque novel, young Rocco Zaccaro arrives in 1880s New York City from small-town Italy and learns to survive on the streets of the notorious Five Points neighborhood. (Photographs by Jacob Riis add historical verisimilitude.) How Rocco--a bold, cheeky narrator--moves from begging to pickpocketing to crusading for children's and animals' rights makes for a compelling page-turner.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Ron Husband. Hopkinson's story based on true events introduces former slave John Meachum's important achievement. In 1847 St. Louis, narrator James's school in the church basement is shut down by a Missouri law prohibiting African American education. Reverend John's brilliant workaround moves the school out of state--to a steamboat on the Mississippi River. Husband's crosshatched art captures moving small details. Author's note included. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(1) 4-6 Voices of sailors who served on submarines in the Pacific theater during WWII are highlighted and, along with numerous photographs, provide a vivid sense of immediacy. Various secondary sources, maps, and sidebars place the sailors' experiences in the larger context of the war. An appealing, engrossing package for readers fascinated by heroism and military strategy. Timeline, websites. Bib., glos., ind.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2016