A winning tribute to an important game-changer—with points off for its discordant pictorial representation.
Macy illuminates the pioneering sportswriter’s 50-year career.
One of three daughters, Garber was introduced to sports by her father. She quarterbacked football with boys, created a lively family newspaper instead of writing letters to relatives, and pursued newspaper work after college. A society reporter at Winston-Salem’s Twin City Sentinel, Garber got a career break during World War II. With the male sportswriters gone, her editor assigned her the sports pages. Garber soon moved to sports for good, covering competitive contests from football to marbles. Macy’s clear, anecdotal writing is backed with solid research and documented quotations. She highlights Garber’s coverage of Jackie Robinson and demonstrates that Garber made inroads too, reporting on games at North Carolina’s segregated African-American schools. She overcame her own discriminatory roadblocks as a woman barred from press boxes and locker rooms. Macy clearly connects Garber’s determination, talent, and sense of fair play with deserved recognition: she garnered a host of awards and widespread admiration. Payne’s otherwise handsome mixed-media illustrations present Garber in caricature—far more so than other figures. The artist disrespects Macy’s respectful narrative, depicting the petite Garber as an unchangingly childish figure throughout, with owlish round glasses, outsize head and ears, and scrawny neck.
A winning tribute to an important game-changer—with points off for its discordant pictorial representation. (author’s note, acknowledgements, chronology, resources, sources, notes) (Picture book/biography. 5-9)Pub Date: Feb. 16, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-4814-0120-3
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Paula Wiseman/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Nov. 10, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2015
Adorable, enchanting, and very ducky indeed.
Feathered newcomers make a memorable theater debut in this latest from actor Andrews and her daughter Hamilton.
Mr. Puddleduck assures his concerned spouse that they’ll find the right place to build a nest for their first clutch of eggs. Exhausted Mrs. P hops into a flower box outside a theater displaying a poster of a performer holding a feathered fan (“That’s a good sign,” says Mr. P). Mrs. P lays her eggs, and Mr. P notes activities inside and outside the building. Peeking in, Mr. P is dazzled by musicians as well as performers wearing glittery costumes: It’s a show! After one rehearsal, Mr. P excitedly quacks and flaps his wings, then feels embarrassed when the performers notice him. He exits but is greeted by Mrs. P’s cacophonous quacking: The newly hatched ducklings, tumbling from the flower box onto the street, must be led to the water, pronto! Mr. P, having learned something about stagecraft, shouts, “Places, everyone!” The ducklings form their own perfect “chorus line,” and the musicians play a marching tune. Indeed, all the performers, as well as various townsfolk, join the parade as the ducklings follow their parents into the water, to a rousing ovation. Bravo to this sweet, gently humorous tale. Readers will be captivated by and root for the protagonists and appreciate the theater setting and denouement. The colorful digital illustrations incorporate lively onomatopoeic words. Human characters are diverse.
Adorable, enchanting, and very ducky indeed. (authors’ note) (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 30, 2024
ISBN: 9780316283083
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A welcome, well-researched reflection of cultural pride in the early-reader landscape.
The fourth installment in Delacre’s early-reader series centers on the rich musical traditions of Puerto Rico, once again featuring sibling tree frogs Rafi and Rosi Coquí.
Readers learn along with Rafi and Rosi as they explore bomba, plena, and salsa in three chapters. A glossary at the beginning sets readers up well to understand the Spanish vocabulary, including accurate phoneticization for non-Spanish speakers. The stories focus on Rafi and Rosi’s relationship within a musical context. For example, in one chapter Rafi finds out that he attracts a larger audience playing his homemade güiro with Rosi’s help even though he initially excluded her: “Big brothers only.” Even when he makes mistakes, as the older brother, Rafi consoles Rosi when she is embarrassed or angry at him. In each instance, their shared joy for music and dance ultimately shines through any upsets—a valuable reflection of unity. Informational backmatter and author’s sources are extensive. Undoubtedly these will help teachers, librarians, and parents to develop Puerto Rican cultural programs, curriculum, or home activities to extend young readers’ learning. The inclusion of instructions to make one’s own homemade güiro is a thoughtful addition. The Spanish translation, also by Delacre and published simultaneously, will require a more advanced reader than the English one to recognize and comprehend contractions (“pa’bajo-pa-pa’rriba”) and relatively sophisticated vocabulary.
A welcome, well-researched reflection of cultural pride in the early-reader landscape. (Early reader. 7-9)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-89239-429-6
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Children's Book Press
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2019
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