(2) K-3 Illustrated by Khoa Le. Resistant to change, Little Star is uncertain how she can help Maker on Holy Night. She follows the shepherds to a stable in Bethlehem and sees a newborn baby there whose eyes are familiar: “This Child...was Maker!” Her gentle gleam calms the Baby, so she stays, shimmering softly overhead for Maker until the travelers from afar arrive to worship the King. Perkins’s child-friendly fantasy about the role played by the Star of Bethlehem offers a thought-provoking, cross-cultural retelling of the Nativity story. Perkins re-teams with Le (Bare Tree and Little Wind: A Story for Holy Week), who beautifully depicts the human and otherworldly aspects of the story with (culturally accurate) diverse skin tones for the people and effervescent ­illustrations of the celestial host.

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

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Khoa Le. Beatrice loves the dark and wearing black, while her younger sister, Roo, prefers the light and wearing "pink and red and purple." They're polar opposites who don't understand each other, but after they each dream about the other one night, Beatrice leads Roo to their farmhouse attic to make a "Roo Potion" to help her enjoy the dark, and the next morning Roo teaches Beatrice a song to "help her like the light." This story of sibling appreciation relies on repetition ("Beatrice likes the night night night and the night night night likes her") to create narrative rhythm and a little mystery, and the bewitching ethereal illustrations set a Halloween mood.

Reviewer: Cynthia K. Ritter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Khoa Le. Loneliness engulfs a young girl in her new life in America, where a roomful of toys and a loving aunt and uncle do little to dispel her homesickness. One day, her aunt tells her a folktale about Persians forced from their homeland seeking ­refuge in India. The Indian king, hesitant to host foreigners, pours a glass of milk and fills it to the brim to indicate that his kingdom is full. Disappointment ripples through the weary travelers. But their clever leader adds a spoonful of sugar to the glass and mixes it without spilling a drop, silently conveying the message that "just like sugar in milk, we will sweeten your lives with our presence." Having won over the king, the travelers, known as Parsis, are welcomed to their new home. The tale her aunt tells shifts the young girl's perspective, and she begins to open herself to her "new and magical homeland." This story of new beginnings, lushly illustrated, celebrates the threads of kindness and ­humanity that bind us together. ­Umrigar's text gracefully alternates between the ­contemporary U.S. of the girl's story and the ancient world of the folktale, incorporating both pathos and humor; Le's art, with its intricate mosaics and brilliant jewel tones, evokes setting and emotion. A border with dynamic swirls of vines as well as a contrasting typeface sets off the story-within-a-story with clarity. Images of the prophet ­Zoroastra and the deity Ahuramazda suggest that the girl's family, like the author, are Parsis.

Reviewer: Sadaf Siddique | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2021