(2) K-3 Fleeing war, a mother and child leave their country, city, and cheerful apartment with a star-shaped cardboard lamp in its window. In the new country everything is different: apartment, language, food, view, even the mother and the narrator. "It's not like home here," the child says, looking at the characterless, bleak apartment and the streets with their incomprehensible signs. But then the two create a new star lamp just like the one in their old home, "and after that, everything around us became a little less different." In verbal and visual counterpoint, Desnitskaya illuminates the storyteller's spare, potent remarks. For example, on the left of one spread is the old, comfy window seat and view, suffused with the star lamp's golden light; on the right is the new place, stark under a bare lightbulb. (One old-life illustration shows a second adult, now missing.) The quality of light -- golden warmth versus blue-screen coldness -- makes visible the sense of alienation and displacement and, in turn, the child's growing familiarity with their new home. Desnitskaya offers no quick, false transformation, but rather an adaptation, an adjustment. That one familiar thing, the star lamp, can't bring home back, but it can make things "a little less different." This succinct, effective story with its clear lines, compact figures, and visual language is as much an appealing graphic tale as it is a picture book.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Anna Forlati. In this thought-provoking book (published in partnership with UNESCO), Santos presents an engaging version of the guessing game "What Am I?" Readers can infer from the book's title that the answer is the thing that makes us human, and the first-person text drops hints as to its identity ("I can show you love. But also hurt you") on every double-page spread, letting readers know that it is both old and new; that it is everywhere; that we can see, hear, and feel it; and that it defines a culture. What is this ubiquitous thing? It is language. This book's call for active engagement aptly celebrates the many ways of looking at a concept. Forlati's digital illustrations represent both literal and figurative interpretations of the text and beg to be re-examined by the reader. For example, the speaker -- language -- states: "When you were a baby, you hardly knew me. Over time you have gotten to know me better and better. But when you are old, you may start to forget me." The accompanying illustration depicts five stages of a child's growth -- during which time the child is knitting a sweater that grows larger, revealing a distinct pattern, one that fades as the sweater unravels and the child ages. Back matter discussing the growth, and loss, of languages and a note from UNESCO explaining the goals of the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (2022–2032) complete this fine book.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) Translated by Vineet Lal. Simler takes on the perspectives of twenty-seven creatures who share the intricacies of their homes in this eye-catching French import. Each entry features a poem about, and illustration of, the animal and its habitat. The playful poem titles include a comet moth's "Silky Apartment," a European fan worm's "Tubular Condo," and the common tailorbird's "Haute Couture Bedchamber." Creatures relate their stories with style: the satin bowerbird tells readers that its home is built from sticks and twigs, which Simler describes as "an arched avenue." It paints its walls with berry juice, adding, "I have a real flair for home decoration." Readers leave with facts about the natural world, such as that the red ovenbird takes several weeks to construct its "Mud Bungalow," that the elf owl is the smallest owl in the world, and that the silk that connects the walls of the "Leafy Fortress" of a weaver ant is spun by young larvae. Simler's highly textured, jewel-tone illustrations give readers detailed peeks into the animals' homes. The elf owl stares directly at readers from its perch on a cactus plant, and a Sumatran orangutan, about to succumb to sleep, gazes out from a "mattress of fresh leaves" in the forest. These vivid, sensory poems could serve as superb classroom writing prompts, and back matter (including a glossary and recommended resources) provides additional information.

Reviewer: Julie Danielson | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2024

(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. Illustrated by Gabriela Lyon. Originally published in Chile, this picture book begins with a quick chart comparing meters to miles (nine kilometers equals 5.59 miles), then the main text begins. A child wearing boots, jeans, and a backpack starts a long early-morning trek: "It's still dark when I leave home." The first-person narration describes counting steps (fifteen thousand on this walk), butterflies, and lizards in order to pass the time. Most of the story is revealed in the atmospheric acrylic paintings; for example, we see the child use a forked stick to raise the bottom of a barbed-wire fence and crawl through. The illustrations vary the point of view, so sometimes we are watching the protagonist, and other times we have a bird's-eye view that demonstrates how small the child is and what a long way there is to go. One particularly effective picture shows the character crossing a cow ­pasture, looking tiny in the expanse with the bigger animals. The matter-of-fact tone is echoed in the ­closing pages, which give information on the distances children in various parts of the world might travel to school--revealed at the end to be our narrator's destination--using specific examples. Additional information about the birds seen in the pictures is appended. The protagonist's path is shown on the endpapers, perhaps encouraging readers to compare their own routes to school.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Amanda Hall. Berne's (On the Wings of Words, rev. 5/20) history of Earth's oceans and the evolution of marine life is presented as a poem in three parts: the formation of the oceans from Earth's early volcanic and atmospheric activity; the first emergence of life within the oceans; and the diversification of life in the seas to what we see today. The rhyming stanzas are impressive, filled with words and cadences that are entertaining to read aloud, and yet also precise in conveying scientific concepts about geological and biological processes. "So to the ocean came all kinds of life-- / fantastic, surprising, and new. / Step by step, bit by bit, they evolved in the sea. / And life grew, and life changed, and life grew." Hall's (Out of This World, rev. 3/19) mixed-media illustrations balance creative use of color and scientific accuracy: portraying the fiery black and orange landscapes of the young planet, the steamy grays and whites of the emerging ocean waters, and then the beautiful blues of the ocean across millions of years and down hundreds of meters. Extensive back matter includes notes from the author and illustrator on their research, detailed profiles of some of the species featured in the illustrations, additional resources and terminology, and a creative foldout timeline of Earth's history that is linked thematically to the concepts and illustrations in the book.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2023

(2) K-3 Translated by Vineet Lal. Illustrated by Anne-Lise Boutin. A girl lives alone in a big house deep in the forest. One day her bat friend suggests that she make room for three bears who "were driven out of their home" and have nowhere to live. The text gives no explanation for the bears' displacement, but an image of them running from a fire allows readers to extrapolate. The child, dubbed "Welcome" by the bear brothers (after the word on her doormat), accepts the new changes to her quiet life and comes to love the vibrancy of her home. But not everyone is comfortable with the newcomers. The neighbors complain to the police, worried that now "all the bears in the world will overrun our beautiful forest." After a suspiciously set fire destroys the house, Welcome and the bears head out into the world looking for a place they will be accepted. Cousseau's somewhat lengthy tale is a modern fable in which creatures migrate and individuals can make room for newcomers even when communities are hostile. The serious themes are balanced by Boutin's decorative, stylized illustrations (with many festive scenes embellished with berries, vines, and flowers) in a palette reminiscent of old-fashioned color-separated art.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(1) K-3 This lyrical picture book is a paean to the vastness of space and the human drive to explore. The Voyager 2 spacecraft, launched in 1977 and still traveling through the stars, narrates its own journey: "I rise up. I am above the clouds. I cross through the daylight." The book starts on Earth--"Since the dawn of time, we have raised our heads and wondered"--and then focuses on the journey as Voyager 2 passes one planet after another. Most pages contain just a few words or phrases, with the emphasis on Decalf's stunning digital illustrations. Broad expanses of black punctuated by countless stars give a sense of the enormousness of space. Color is used sparingly, with most of the images in shades of black, gray, silver, and white. The final spread asks readers to look into the vast night sky and think of Voyager 2, still "out there." The endnote describes NASA's plans for Voyager 1 and Voyager 2.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2023

(2) K-3 Readers journey to the Stone Age to meet our human ancestors and the animals that inhabited the Earth with them. Haine's text is spare and lyrical. Although there is no written history, the archaeological record--including artifacts of tools and cave paintings that are shown throughout in eye-pleasing earth-tone digital illustrations with handmade textures--allows her to make assertions and relate facts about life at that time. "Some animals became our friends. Others were our food. Some thought that we were their food!" Subtle hints about evolutionary development appear on the endpapers, with the opening set depicting humans as they may have appeared then and the final set imagining similar-looking humans with slight cosmetic changes today. The dual concepts--that all animals are connected and that humans are connected to their past--­occasionally bifurcate the account, but the distraction is slight. An author's note provides brief information about the Paleolithic period spotlighted here as well as additional renderings of artifacts from the period.

Reviewer: Betty Carter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2023

(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Satwik Gade. Born in 1887 in southern India, Srinivasa Ramanujan would, before his untimely death in 1920, become one of the most influential mathematicians of the twentieth century. In an admiring view of an extraordinary individual, Narayanan chronicles Ramanujan's life: from curious young son of a clerk who sees numbers and patterns wherever he gazes, to his travels to Cambridge, England, where he impresses Europe's greatest mathematicians with his novel approaches to numerical thinking, and finally to his illness-induced return to India and death. The clear and succinct text explains Ramanujan's mathematical ideas in a thoroughly understandable manner. Gade's vivid digital art displays Ramanujan's unique mathematical daydreams for readers, helping them to begin to see the patterns that fascinated him. Numbers, patterns, graphs, and diagrams are scattered within most spreads, helping convey the idea that his mind never strayed from his obsession with numbers. Significant back matter (including an informative author's note, a glossary, and an explanation of magic squares) allows Narayanan to fully flesh out Ramanujan's continued importance to both the field of mathematics and the people of India.

Reviewer: Eric Carpenter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2023

(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. Illustrated by Juan Palomino. A young teacher (unnamed in the text) sets off to her remote school assignment in the Amazon armed with determination and a precious box of books. Her students warn her of the coming "great serpent" and run out of class one day; she grudgingly follows them but thinks they need to learn that legends aren't real. When she watches the serpent of mud caused by heavy rains and a rising river sweep away the school and her books, she begins to understand why she should have taken the students seriously. Adults share with the teacher their practice of embroidering images of legends and creating cloth books, which allows them to replenish the school library and inspires the teacher to create new lessons and learn the community's indigenous language. Straightforward prose and intentionally vague characterization present the story as a fable with encouraging lessons about the importance of cultural exchange and the power of nature. Intricate, digitally rendered spreads in shades of teal, orange, and green are filled with images that blend the natural and the legendary.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Chris Raschka. This book about a lost dog is also a musical and cultural journey along the Mississippi Blues Trail. Duncan's (Just like a Mama, rev. 3/20) freewheeling narrative opens with young Bo Willie waking up to an empty doghouse, an open gate, and the harsh truth: his puppy is gone. He sets out to find Yellow Dog, first asking Farmer Fred if he's seen the pup. "Old Yella hit Highway 61," Fred tells him, and Bo Willie is off. Mr. Yee's son saw Yellow Dog "on Dockery Farm, where Muddy Waters played the blues." That lead turns out to be a dead end, but Bo Willie then sees a sign for the Boogie Blues Club Merigold and hitches a ride with Aunt Jessie in her pink Cadillac. Eventually, they hear that the pup left on a Greyhound bus, traveling with a band. "Where can that little dog be?" Studying the map provides the answer: Yellow Dog has moved to Memphis. The story's moral: some dogs are loyal, and some "ramble and run the road. They love you and then they're gone." Raschka's (Mama Baby, rev. 3/20; Saint Spotting, rev. 5/21) compelling art, "created with fabric paint and embroidery thread on raw canvas," adds a down-home feel and a bit of levity to the emotional drama. Notes about the origins of Delta Blues and the landmarks on the Mississippi Blues Trail are appended. While many of the musical references will be over the heads of the picture-book audience, this simple introduction to blues history tells a universal story of loss to which many kids will relate; and some may even admire the pup's independent spirit.

Reviewer: Luann Toth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(2) PS Illustrated by Delphine Renon. Leo, a young cheetah, gets a pen for his birthday. His father promises that after returning from the market he will show Leo how to make "beautiful things" emerge. Impatient, Leo asks his big sister; a hen named Coco-Tembo; and giraffe Super-Zombo, but none knows how a pen works. Leo's mother finally shows him how to write his name, and tells him that "all the words in the world" are in the pen. Leo then draws on his own, and the story ends with the child showing his delighted father his creations. The prose is direct and feels effortless in this satisfying tale about innate creativity. Renon's cheery colored-pencil and ink illustrations feature animals dressed in appealing clothing and framed by lush, decorative greenery. The simple figures and bold hues on clean white backgrounds give the book a friendly, open feel. Along with the heartfelt message, the story and pictures contain touches of humor. Leo's sister sports headphones and looks to be reading a magazine. The giraffe tries (and fails) to use the pen as a flute. This is Cameroonian writer and poet Dzotap's first book to be translated into English, and it will be welcomed on preschool and kindergarten shelves.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2022

(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schmiel. In first-person narration, an anxious child describes their day. "When I leave the house, everything is so difficult for me. I feel a prickling that won't go away, and every step I take is a triumph." Between the overstimulating environment of the bus and an inability to answer a greeting from the baker or to say a classmate's name, the young narrator struggles, hopeful that someday it won't be so hard to say more than a quiet "yes" or "thanks." Originally published in Spain, the book does a remarkable job of presenting the actions and feelings of a child who lives with severe anxiety. Spreads alternate: the child's narration is printed in white type set starkly on black pages (mostly double-page spreads), while the following wordless spread or spreads feature hectic, emotionally charged drawings. While riding the bus, the narrator comments, "A man shouts. I don't like it when people shout." Turn the page, and we see a man's face, mouth open, brows furrowed; the image is repeated over and over, filling much of the spread, on top of irregular blocks of color. A final scene gives the narrator and readers a small success and some relief. Reminiscent of Yashima's Crow Boy, the book, with its flat text and uncomfortable, jarring art, makes a powerful impact.

Reviewer: Maeve Visser Knoth | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2022

(2) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. A typical day on the savanna inspires Kibo, a rhinoceros, to write a book. "He wrote about the red sky of the savanna, the silhouettes of the birds, the buzz of the bugs." Naki the crane reads over Kibo's shoulder and is so moved that she sews up his pages between yellow covers and then flies the bound copy over the sea and drops it in a faraway city. The book then travels from a lion to a rabbit to a hen, ultimately winding up with Nanuk, a North Pole polar bear. ­Johnson's folk-art style, in warm shades of blue, yellow, and orange, gives the illustrations a retro vibe that suits the DIY ethos of Kibo's creation and the way it moves through the world. The flora and fauna that surround Kibo when he's writing recur whenever his story finds a new reader, giving a visual sense of how books allow thoughts and ideas to travel from one mind to another. Satisfying in itself, this book will also find a happy home in classrooms and serve as a springboard for young bookmakers' creative endeavors.

Reviewer: Adrienne L. Pettinelli | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) K-3 As a child in Ukraine, our protagonist couldn't stand borsch. "Get away from me, you red, thick, disgusting soup!" she says on the very first page, as a huge wave of the stuff curls ominously toward her. On subsequent spreads, readers learn more about her aversion and about borsch's ingredients, plus conditions in Ukraine at the time: "There wasn't much else to eat!" Before her family immigrates to the United States, the child is gifted with various recipes, but in truth she's thrilled to have choices other than borscht (its American spelling). Time passes, and then one day the now-adult narrator, feeling nostalgic, retrieves the recipes, gathers her ingredients, and prepares the once-reviled dish, which reminds her of home (though...we don't see her actually eating it). Acrylic, pencil, and digital collage illustrations--featuring oversize vegetables and ­sunflowers, unusual angles and ­perspectives, and layers of texture--capture the story's lighthearted quirkiness, its universality regarding picky eaters, and its cultural specificity, especially welcome today. The appended author's note provides a disclaimer--"There are as many borsch recipes as there are Ukrainian grandmas. And don't even get me started on the neighboring countries of Eastern Europe and their borsch recipes!"--and the author's own step-by-step version.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Luisa Uribe. Cateura, Paraguay: a town built on a landfill. Families survive by working as gancheros digging through mountains of trash in hopes of finding recyclable cardboard, plastic, and metal to resell. From this town, with the help in 2006 of Favio Chávez, an environmental engineer who was also a musician, comes a children's orchestra using instruments made from the trash their homes are built upon: "oven trays, old drain pipes, door keys, metal forks and spoons, X-ray films, bottle caps, glue canisters, plastic buttons, paint canns." While Oliver's text centers Chávez (an outsider who is set up as a bit of a savior in the narrative), the artwork effectively positions the children of Cateura as the emotional focus of the story. Uribe's digital art is warm and inviting; ­ever-present sunshine seems to flood the outdoor setting, highlighting the musicians and their remarkable instruments. "'The world sends us garbage,' Favio says. 'We send back music.'" An inspiring picture book that demonstrates how environmentalism and the arts can unite to bring joy to an entire community. Back matter includes further details about Chávez and the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura as well as a bibliography that helpfully includes links to videos where readers can see and hear the orchestra perform.

Reviewer: Eric Carpenter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(1) K-3 Translated by Lawrence Schimel. Illustrated by Raquel Catalina. On a playing field in a city neighborhood's central square, young Madani, a recent arrival, is the best player on his soccer team. He plays barefoot, and his teammates speculate how much better, even, he would play if he had proper cleats. They know Madani is saving up little by little (skipping afternoon snacks, walking instead of taking the bus) and await the day he can afford to buy cleats--hopefully before the upcoming match with their longtime rivals. Meanwhile, his mother sews all day in their apartment, listening to the faint cheers for Madani that waft through her window. The story is narrated by one of Madani's teammates and reflects childlike concerns and perspectives. So the focus stays on the wonder of Madani's skills rather than where he came from; and also, crucially, on the anticipated new cleats rather than what Madani is actually saving up for, which will likely come as a surprise to young readers. The illustrations in this Spanish import, in pencil, gouache, and colored pencil, capture a bustling neighborhood of sidewalk cafes, newsstands, fountains, passersby, traffic, and pigeons. The spreads showing soccer action are full of movement and energy as Madani juggles the ball, dodges opponents, shoots, and scores. A beautiful book centering on the beautiful game, but about so much more: immigrant life, family, friendship, love.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2022

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Frances Ives. "It's not fair. I never got to say goodbye." This first-person account of bereavement is narrated by a child helping to care for a beloved uncle who is undergoing cancer treatment. When Uncle Mike is feeling up to it, the two spend time by the shore. One day the child finds a hermit crab and adopts it as a pet. Then the time comes when Uncle Mike must stay in the hospital; the child cannot visit his new "germ-free room"due to age restrictions, and, sadly, misses the chance to say a final farewell. Frustrated by platitudes (e.g., that Uncle Mike is in "a better place": "What place could be better than Uncle Mike's house on the beach?"), the child takes comfort from the seaside and its treasure trove of memories. With the help of the hermit crab, Uncle Mike's yellow baseball cap, and Mom's hug, the child is finally able to say a unique and heartfelt goodbye. Zollman's text is honest, compassionate, and non-saccharine, with apt metaphors ("The ocean with its white-caps looks upset, too"). Ives's beautiful, subdued mixed-media illustrations gently underscore the story's theme. With its honest presentation of death and loss, this book will serve as a good resource for adults hoping to start a conversation, in terms that children can understand.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2022

(2) K-3 Translated by Laura Watkinson. Illustrated by Elsa Klever. "This is the story of a long journey, but I'll keep it as short as I can because it has such a lovely ending." This fascinating, very beautiful picture book describes the journey, in the nineteenth century, of one canary, part of a group of 189, transported by a bird trader via foot, train, and steamship from the silver mines of the Harz Mountains in Germany to New York, where it is purchased as a pet. The storytelling style uses the present tense to pull the reader directly into a faraway time and place. Böge's narration is full of sensory details ("With every step, the rack sways left, then right. The cages rub against each other, and the thin wooden bars creak quietly") that are particularly appropriate for a story about a bird prized for its voice. Klever's mixed-media illustrations, with a muted color palette, have the flat perspective of folk art. The canary is the brightest object on most pages, and Klever expresses the richness of its song with imagery of the things whose sounds influence it, including trees, wind, rain, waves, trains, and other animals. An extensive, highly illustrated afterword includes a history of canaries and their use in mining and as pets.

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

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Mikela Prevost. Zahra's classmate Kyle struggles with reading and penmanship (and other fine motor tasks), and he sits on a large ball, instead of a chair like the other students. When their teacher asks for someone to help Kyle, Zahra always volunteers, because Kyle is generous and kind and she enjoys spending time with him. Then a group of classmates starts picking on her about it. She caves to peer pressure, avoids contact with Kyle, and refuses to help, telling him to "do it yourself!" Zahra later moves to a new school without ever having apologized to Kyle or ­making amends, and she is haunted by her actions (à la Woodson and Lewis's Each Kindness, rev. 1/13). She decides from then on to be the kind of person who is helpful, and reaches out to a new classmate in need of assistance. Mixed-media illustrations home in on facial expressions, ranging from openness to disapproval to delight. The strength-based representation of a child with a disability is welcome; Kyle is a whole person with some challenges but many gifts. Author and illustrator notes delve into the autobiographical roots of the story and reinforce the message that "being kind is always the right decision."

Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam | Horn Book Magazine Issue: November, 2021