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Memory
422 Reviews
(2)
K-3
A young protagonist with a deep internal life shares a personal memory in this intimate and indelible picture book. The unnamed redhead recounts tripping face-down on the cobblestone ground. As a scab develops on their injured knee, the child experiences fear, disgust, wonder, and impatience. They name the scab Pepper, and one day Pepper -- drawn with a stylized face -- speaks to the child. The child engages with the scab, telling stories and sharing thoughts during lonely days in the country spent with grandparents (and without a dog). Over time, Pepper shrinks and gets softer, and the protagonist gets used to its presence. ("She was just doing what scabs do.") Then one day, the scab falls off. The child finds Pepper in the bedsheets and says goodbye by gently dropping it outside among the poppies. The once-injured knee, now smooth, inspires reflection on the child's past: about how it felt having the scab, about visiting with grandparents, and what life was like before their cuddly pet dog joined the family. Illustrations rendered with gouache, oil, collage, and wax pencils fill colorful spreads with emotive angles and textures. Words and images are portrayed with rhythm and sensory details, which bring depth to character and illuminate the comforting settings. This exploration of pain, healing, change, wonder, and time can also serve as an educational mentor text for lessons about personal narratives.
Reviewer: Elisa Gall
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2024
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Sona Avedikian.
In a story inspired by her husband's grandfather, Boukarim provides a powerful examination of the loss inflicted by the Armenian Genocide. After soldiers suddenly arrive at their home, the young protagonist and his two sisters are forced to flee, embarking on an exhausting journey to escape the coming violence. Quiet and mournful, the boy, though himself safe, slowly lets go of the hope of ever seeing his mother again. Finally, after many decades, he finds the words necessary to share his story and the history with his grandchildren -- a remembrance of an ordeal long untold. "'Where are we from, Dada?' I didn't see it coming. I found my words, dusty from years of sitting in the dark, unspoken." Avedikian's digital illustrations, rendered with a warm palette and suffused with familial love and comfort, make a harrowing story approachable for young readers. Back matter includes notes from both the author and illustrator detailing their personal connections to the Armenian Genocide; family photographs; and a map showing the two possible escape routes that may have been used by the author's extended family members. A necessary and well-crafted picture book about a part of world history too often ignored and sadly still relevant.
Reviewer: Eric Carpenter
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2024
(2)
4-6
Seventh grader Mahnoor Raheem is less than thrilled when her Pakistani grandmother, Dadi, comes to live with them in Texas. Not only does Maha have to give up her bedroom, but her father also expects her to "babysit" his mother while he and Maha's mom work long hours at the hospital. Although her home life is disrupted, Maha is excited about her media studies elective; she sees the class as a steppingstone to pursuing her dream of becoming a journalist. A class project -- making "a documentary on a topic that's newsworthy" -- gives Maha the opportunity to learn more about Dadi's life and an appreciation for what history can teach us about the present. By spending time with her grandmother prepping meals, participating in her first Ramadan fast, and playing board games, she learns a great deal about the 1947 Partition of British India into India and Pakistan. Faruqi introduces readers to the Partition, the largest mass migration in history, through relatable characters experiencing recognizable middle-school dynamics. The conversational style of the historical retelling offsets some of the heavier issues of rampant violence, refugee resettlement, and trauma. Readers are rewarded with a deeply immersive and moving story as Maha experiences a shift in understanding of her hyphenated identities and connects her family's history to other immigrant experiences.
Reviewer: Sadaf Siddique
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2024
(1)
4-6
Fong's deeply moving graphic novel opens with an intriguing premise: Pia Xing, a reserved and lonely middle schooler, says goodbye to her father and embarks on a multi-day bus tour through the desert with a bunch of strangers. Their destination is the subterranean bioluminescent Cessarine Lake, billed as having mystical, wish-granting powers. During stops at diners and kitschy roadside attractions, Pia gets to know her fellow passengers, all of whom have their own reasons for making the journey. Pia isn't ready to share hers -- not even with new friend Sam, who's grudgingly accompanying her tour-guide mom. Daily phone calls home to her father and flashbacks from the previous year gradually reveal what led to this solo trip, including the tragedy that left Pia and both her parents mired in grief. In varied panel and full-page illustrations, Fong's spare cartoon style is well suited to the setting and the main character's bleak emotional landscape. The trip offers moments of peace and lightheartedness: "I'm actually having a lot of fun! It kind of feels like being part of a big family." The story begins to take on elements of magical realism the closer the group gets to the lake, making the impossible begin to seem possible. Pia's miracle looks different from what she set out looking for, but the magic is transformative all the same. With a sympathetic protagonist navigating unimaginable pain, fully realized and engaging secondary characters, and a skillfully crafted narrative, this is a remarkable debut.
Reviewer: Kitty Flynn
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
January, 2024
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Susie Ghahremani.
Memory and connections with the "old country" can be important parts of the experience for immigrant families. In this story, a young girl helps her Iranian (as identified in the back matter) grandmother, Nana, tend her garden, while relishing "the stories she tells me about a garden she knows far away." As the two plant and water geraniums, Nana shares tales of "back home," even though the girl doesn't "know where 'back home' is." There were tall cypress trees, fragrant jasmine, lilac, and hyacinth; there was a fishpond, and fruit trees including cherry, mulberry, and pomegranate. Gouache illustrations on vellum represent a modest Western garden in contrast with the lusher, bursting garden of Nana's memories on the facing page. Paisley, floral, and other distinctly traditional Persian designs adorn the pages in saffron yellows, minty greens, and radish-y reds. These embellishments make a visual connection between Nana's new home and her "back home" memories; the book's playful endpapers also capture this design aesthetic. In this gentle tale, stories are like plants that grow in the girl's imagination, taking root to bloom into cultural pride and intergenerational connection. Author and illustrator notes discuss the importance of gardens for many Iranians as well as the importance of cultural transmission.
Reviewer: Julie Hakim Azzam
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2024
(2)
4-6
Illustrated by
Prashant Miranda.
In this companion to Newbery Honor Book The Night Diary[cf12] (rev. 7/18), Nisha's twin brother, Amil, resumes the story. Everything was supposed to get better after their family survived the terrifying journey from Mirpur Khas to Bombay following the partition of India in 1947. Now they have a new flat, their father has a job at the hospital, and the twins are attending school. But Amil keeps flashing back to the terrible things he saw and experienced. He tries to quell his anxieties by drawing in his sketchbook (exuberantly depicted by illustrator Miranda), but what he really wants are "a friend and a bicycle." Part of those wishes comes true when he meets Vishal, a mysterious boy from a local refugee camp. When Vishal suddenly disappears, Amil discovers that the point of his own survival may be to help ensure the same for someone else. Fans of the previous title will appreciate this compassionate and thoughtful continuation of the family's story, while new readers can experience Amil's account of hope and survivor guilt as a standalone volume. A glossary and author's note are appended.
Reviewer: Jennifer Hubert Swan
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
January, 2024
(1)
K-3
Illustrated by
Brian Floca.
"In Michigan country on a two-rut road along a stream called the upper South Branch of the Au Sable River," a young boy sits on his father's lap in a red Jeep, two sets of hands on the steering wheel, as they head out on a camping trip. Set in the early 1950s and rooted in Jackson's own boyhood memories, this homage to a moment in time is beautifully rendered and made specific in poetic text and brilliant illustrations of fly fishing, catching brown trout, cooking on an open fire, and trying to spot an owl. But that was last summer, and now winter has come to their Michigan town, a gray-blue world of snow-covered houses with yellow lights; the boy is on his mother's lap, thinking of "Dad now as he drives another Jeep in a far-away war." Floca's stunning yet gentle illustrations in pen, ink, watercolor, and gouache were completed after Jackson's death in 2019 and capture the varied greens of a summer day in the country, the shimmering light on a trout half in and half out of the water, and the eerie moon in a nighttime sky. The effective interplay of text and art makes this slender tale of reminiscence unforgettable.
Reviewer: Dean Schneider
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(1)
K-3
Illustrated by
Beatriz Gutiérrez Hernández.
When the nocturnal animals that surround a family's house in the desert come out, "they howl and buzz and hoot -- a chorus in need of a band." On the ample porch, each family member plays an instrument (some passed down from ancestors) that complements a natural sound -- maracas that sound like rattlesnakes, a flute "calling down the wind." The child narrator is learning to play guitar from Grandma and practices diligently to be able to join in the nightly concert. Gutiirréz Hernández's expansive illustrations -- digitally rendered from acrylic gouache and colored pencil -- open with sunny pinks and gradually deepen into inky blue-greens and pearlescent whites as night falls. Kemp's lyrical metaphors set the desert stage, and "an audience of [the family's] ancestors" dances in the stars above and in their memories. The narrator's parents remind them that nature is full of memories: the moon is "a memory of the sun," and Mami sings "about the cacti remembering the rain." A gorgeous, intergenerational reflection on being mindful of the present while remembering and honoring loved ones from the past. Notes from author and illustrator are appended. Concurrently published in Spanish as Cancisn del desiertó.
(2)
YA
Thirteen-year-old Liv lives with her parents in England. When she's tasked with a family history assignment for school, she decides to investigate her ninety-two-year-old grandmother. While helping Bubbe move into an assisted living facility, Liv discovers a secret chest from her grandmother's past and learns more than she bargained for. A second story unfolds in alternating chapters: twelve-year-old Mila and her older sister, Hannie, live in Holland in 1942, but since they are Jewish and the Nazis have taken over the country, they do not live with their parents. Rather, they have assumed different identities, hiding in plain sight with a non-Jewish foster family in Amsterdam. Hannie gets drawn into the Dutch resistance with grave consequences; she is the titular Kingfisher. It's quickly revealed that Mila is, in fact, Liv's grandmother, but Kessler makes readers wait to learn the entire story, using lots of dialogue, a notably fast pace, four viewpoint characters, and several dozen short chapters to further develop suspense. An engrossing read, one that provides depth to the Dutch experience during the Holocaust beyond Anne Frank and her famous diary.
Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Brooke Smart.
The main table in a home is often where memories are made. Killian's debut picture book explores this table's many roles in one family's life. The easy-to-read story starts where a wooden table begins: "as a seed that grew into a great strong tree." The tree is felled, taken to a workshop, and carefully crafted. The top is sanded, legs attached. The wood is stained, sealed, and set to dry. The family places the table "in the middle of a house, and life grew up around it." Smart's watercolor illustrations add to the story with playful and inventive scenes. The number of people grows and shrinks, and scenes evolve from the quiet act of arranging flowers to a birthday party spilling over with family and friends. Their table is filled to overflowing with the chaos of an unfolded map, children's drawings, and more. A clean, empty table shown near the end prompts discussion about readers' own experiences around family tables. The story concludes where it started: "This table began as a seed and became the heart of someone's home."
(2)
YA
Tess's family just moved, and she is happy to start eighth grade in a school where no one knows her dad passed away three years ago. Sharing homemade treats -- her dad taught her how to bake -- helps win friends, and she's invited to return to a youth baking competition that holds both positive and painful memories. But worsening stomachaches since the move have forced her to create a lengthy "do-not-eat" list. The pain in her gut that she first compares to a woodpecker rapidly upgrades to a porcupine ("with laser-sharp quills") and then to "the Knife." Tess is sure her can-do attitude and sense of humor will pull her through, but when competition preparation wears her out so much that she passes out in school, she must finally fess up to family and friends about her stomach issues to enlist their help. The story offers a realistic and often funny portrayal of middle school life and treats grief and chronic illness sensitively and with a light touch. Tess is an endearing character with an equally likable support network. The appended "Letter from Kirby and Quinn" explains how the mother-and-daughter team were careful to include accurate details about living with Crohn's disease based on Wyatt's own experience with the illness.
(2)
YA
The Buddhist belief that the soul goes through "a state between life and rebirth" for forty-nine days before crossing over provides the intriguing structure for Lee's debut graphic novel. The story straddles the worlds of the living and the dead, beginning with a Korean American girl named Kit awakening by a shore. She treks along the deserted beach toward an unknown destination, only to wake the next day in the same spot where she'd started. Repeated excursions lead to a seeming demise as she slips off a boulder or gets swept away by a powerful tide. As the scenes progress, they begin to include flashbacks, with memories of the communal activity of preparing kimchi providing glimpses of the ties of family. A parallel plot shows Kit's family in the present day coping with their grief. Each story line has its own soft palette (grays for Kit's wandering, muted orange for the memories, reddish brown for Kit's family now), with wordless panels appearing frequently and showcasing the bold, dark line drawings. Juxtaposed disparate shots challenge readers to infer the narrative continuity and meaning in between panels. The forty-nine rapidly paced chapters unpack a tale of grief, loss, love, and healing through a metaphysical journey of redemption and self-discovery. An author's note touches on the broad spectrum of Buddhist traditions regarding death.
Reviewer: Jerry Dear
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(1)
4-6
At the start of the story, eleven-year-old Sophia Henry Winslow presents three words to remember. "Listen carefully. This will be important...I'll explain later." Sophia is a keen observer, and readers benefit from her straightforward descriptions of her small-town New Hampshire community, a running commentary on how to write a story, and -- most of all -- the things she notices, or willfully does not notice, about others, most specifically her very best friend and next-door neighbor, Sophie Gershowitz, age eighty-eight. The impending visit of Sophie's adult son ("Aaron the Accountant from Akron is an Annoyance"), along with upsetting overheard conversations between her parents about her friend's medical condition, inspire the girl to do a little armchair-diagnosing via a borrowed Merck Manual. While covertly testing Sophie's memory ("Ask the patient to recall three objects after a three-minute delay"), she learns even more about her friend's past and eventually comes to terms with the inevitable regarding her living situation. The best solution is not hiding Sophie in the abandoned house across the street, one of many amusing, and poignant, details that prevent the story from turning maudlin by staying true to one idiosyncratic and well-drawn child's voice and perspective -- and through Lowry-esque observations on the equally well-rounded, well-meaning, and imperfect secondary cast of characters around her.
Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(2)
K-3
Lu sets up an intergenerational conflict familiar to many immigrant families: Bao, a young Taiwanese American child, yearns for her immigrant mother to understand her, but neither of them is fully able to empathize with the other. This tension reaches a peak when Bao's unfulfilled wish for an "All-American Artist Amanda" doll -- a white, blond, blue-eyed doll that closely resembles one of Bao's own friends -- leads her to commit a rash act of shoplifting. In the aftermath, Mama and Bao finally communicate with each other. Mama relates painful stories about her own childhood and mother, and together they hand-sew a doll for Bao that shares her features, with hair "straight like dry noodles," eyes "as dark as sesame," and a smile "curved like a crescent moon." Lu skillfully juxtaposes simple but poetic language with expressive digital illustrations that mimic the soft texture of smudged oil pastels. Her judicious use of hue and composition, especially within and around the gutter, creates a clear visual of the characters' internal emotional landscapes and the evolution of their relative distance and intimacy. Bao's red and Mama's blue, initially segregated, eventually converge and blend into a gradient containing purple. The illustrations also include various cultural and linguistic details that will likely resonate with many Taiwanese diaspora readers and add another layer to the reading experience.
McCormick, Patricia
& Babakar, Mevan
The Bicycle: How an Act of Kindness Changed a Young Refugee's Life
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Yas Imamura.
When her family must flee their beloved home in Kurdistan, young Mevan's status as a refugee makes her feel smaller and smaller until she makes herself invisible. The family travels from Azerbaijan to Russia to the Netherlands, where a kind man sees her, despite her ability to hide herself, and gives her the perfect gift -- a red bicycle -- making her feel "a hundred feet tall." This true story, gently told in the third person and coauthored by Babakar herself, is brought to life through evocative mixed-media illustrations, which capture the deep loneliness of leaving a home full of friends and family. The illustrations shift from the lush greenery of Kurdistan to the stark concrete of Soviet Bloc apartments to a colorful and joyous double-page spread when Mevan first rides her bicycle. An epilogue and author's note describe more of Babakar's experience as a young refugee and tell her story of returning to the Netherlands as an adult and reuniting with the kind apartment manager who gave her the bike. A reflective story about the isolation of life as a child refugee and about the enduring effects of an act of kindness.
Reviewer: Laura Koenig
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(1)
4-6
In a first-person narrative, ten-year-old Ayla relates her special connection to her best friend, Kiri, beginning when they first reached out to each other as infants. Together they develop a keen interest in trees: caring for them, learning about them, and aspiring to be more tree-like. Their neighborhood plants trees to celebrate new babies, including a birch for Ayla and a pine for Kiri. With a hint of foreshadowing, Ayla notes that trees are also planted to remember those who have died. Her loose, dreamy narrative dances around current details, but she eventually confides she misses Kiri, insisting that her friend will be back soon. Meanwhile, an old telephone appears in her birch tree. Ayla finds it magical but refuses to attempt a call, though other people who have lost loved ones begin using it as a mechanism to talk to them. Ayla divulges small incidents and observations like a trail of breadcrumbs, allowing readers to piece together what she herself cannot admit: Kiri is not coming home. Ayla's voice as she comes to terms with what has happened, combined with the care and understanding of those supporting her while she grieves, create an intensely emotional reading experience. Interlaced throughout, the parallel world of the trees, with their mysterious methods of communicating and working together, provides a noble community model. An author's note pays tribute to Itaru Sasakai's phone booth in Japan, where people find comfort talking to those they have lost on an unconnected rotary phone.
Reviewer: Julie Roach
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2024
(2)
4-6
Ernest is a quiet, shy boy fascinated by the Oxford English Dictionary. Along with his three siblings and his father, he is disturbed and mystified by the sudden disappearance of his mother, Beatrice. In his quest to find her, Ernest has two allies: outgoing friend Quinn and a sentient typewriter named Olivetti. Olivetti can see, hear, feel, and -- though otherwise inanimate -- communicate by typing (as long as someone provides paper). The typewriter also retains a memory of everything that was ever typed on him. His first-person narration alternates with Ernest's as the mystery plot deepens. Clues and shenanigans, quirks and magic, create a smokescreen for both Ernest and the reader, obscuring the real-world human story of a parent with cancer, which is gradually and poignantly revealed. In a surreal, rollicking conclusion, Ernest and his family, including the returned Beatrice, join forces with Olivetti to liberate and repair abandoned typewriters and create a revolution of joyful human-typewriter interaction. The point here could involve an upending of our dystopian AI worries, or could be as simple as a celebration of writing as a therapeutic endeavor in times of trouble. Either way, Ernest is a memorable character in an equally memorable family.
Reviewer: Sarah Ellis
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2024
(2)
YA
Desert and rural landscapes from the U.S. Southwest serve as the backdrop to the coming-of-age stories of two childhood friends. High school senior Magdalena "Mags" Herrera, who lives with her abuela, is in a secret relationship with a girl at school. Mags is afflicted by grief, guilt, and uncertainty for a variety of reasons, and when her childhood friend Nessa, who is trans, comes back to their small town, it stirs up a rollercoaster of emotions. As the two friends spend time together, they uncover repressed memories, including a friend's death. A mysterious creature that lives in Mags and Abuela's basement brings mythical elements to the narrative and connects to family and personal secrets. The illustrations in this graphic novel effectively shift between black-and-white for the present story and color to represent childhood memories. Although Mags's heritage isn't specifically named, the incorporation of Spanish language (with occasional errors and, at times, an overly formal tone), settings, names, and motifs indicates a Latinx Catholic household. Strengths of the novel include the fully fleshed-out queer characters as well as the depiction of their internal and external battles as Mags and Nessa release their respective hurts and discover their real selves. An author's note, with images, reflects on Ostertag's process.
Reviewer: Sujei Lugo
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2024
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Hayden Goodman.
A young girl and her family celebrate the annual West African tradition of masquerade -- the first one since her grandfather's death. The dark-skinned protagonist hears the "Dum! Dum! Dum! Dum!" of drums and knows masquerade, which "honor[s] our ancestors," will soon begin. Her family, dressed in traditional garb, shares akaras, "Grandpa's favorite food," and carries items that belonged to him: Mama wears his bead bracelet; Papa wears his green velvet hat; and the girl's brother proudly carries his special walking stick. Despite the festivities, the little girl feels that "masquerade without [Grandpa] hurts too much." The drummers and musicians "stream by in splashes of color and fanfare," followed by the masquerades -- costumed performers whose masks (per an author's note) symbolize "the tribe's cultural roots" and represent deities, spirits, or ancestors. "The burst of energy in the air lifts my spirit and gives me courage. I know what I must do." When the dancers finally appear, the girl courageously participates in the celebration in her own way. Goodman's culturally rich gouache illustrations add energy to this heartfelt introduction to the uniqueness of this village-wide masquerade celebration. A joyful story of a ritual of remembrance.
Reviewer: Michelle H. Martin
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
July, 2024
(2)
K-3
Illustrated by
Stef Murphy.
Freya and her mum arrive at a countryside log cabin suffused in gloomy blue with snow falling in the darkness. Mum tells her that "Dad loved this old place...He used to say it was magical," but Freya feels that the cabin is cold and empty with "just the two of them." Freya ventures outside with her sled and encounters, and follows, a friendly white fox. As the fox prances, "coloured sparks flew up from the snow." The fox pulls Freya on the sled, "sending frosty fires spiralling into the starlit sky" before it vanishes. Murphy's mixed-media illustrations show the night sky exuberantly shot through with the yellows, pinks, and whites of the northern lights, thin lines delicately and realistically outlining such natural elements as pine trees. Freya returns to the cabin, and the blues now look dazzling as she and Mum watch the sky and then sit together in a cozy nook with colorful touches such as stars hung over the window seat. Over the inviting fire is a picture of the family, including Freya's dad, as mother and daughter cuddle together over a photo album. A brief author's note reveals the story's connection to the Saami myth from Finnish Lapland of fire foxes creating the northern lights. This tender story combines mythology with an empathetic and spare narrative of loss and remembrance.
Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
March, 2024
422 reviews
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