★
REVIEW TEAM FAVORITE
Big
By: Vashti Harrison
Illustrated by: Vashti Harrison
Medal Winner
Reviewed by: Lara Lleverino
Also read and recommended by: Deanna Knoll, Sandy Hall
Big is a compelling jumping off place for a nuanced discussion wrapped in heart-tugging cotton candy sweet illustrations. In a culture of conflicting messages about being comfortable in your skin versus an obsession with makeup, cosmetic surgery, and digital photograph filters this picture book is a reminder to kids and adults that kindness should always be the rule and a human's value has nothing to do with their size or body type. Big's heroine is a delightfully cute girl who is battered by the awareness that she doesn't quite fit the center of the bell curve on the height and weight chart. My favorite spread showcases her taking the hurtful words others have labeled her with and returning them and stating how they made her feel. Children and adults alike can all use coaching to help them name their feelings and know they are valid. Where the picture book leaves me feeling unequipped is when this young girl's stand for herself rejects what might be well-meaning offers to help her "change". The book leaves it vague as to whether the offer for change is for purely cosmetic, acceptance, or health reasons. While it is an important message to the picture book audience to remember people's value is not rooted in their appearances and kindness and autonomy are to be highly valued, what is left out of the discussion is the value of healthy lifestyles and the benefit of a friend in pursuing those goals. While I appreciate the message and limits of the book and the difficulty of speaking to both a young and adult audience I would also like a book that tackles the increasingly difficult task of talking about the health of our bodies in a way that empowers and educates our society without shame or hurt.
In Every Life
By: Marla Frazee
Illustrated by: Marla Frazee
Honor
Reviewed by: Lara Lleverino
In trying to be everything to everyone this book becomes nothing to anybody. Marla Frazee admits to having struggled through multiple attempts to put into words the reaction she had to a call and response blessing she heard. The call-and-response format is replicated in the two sides of the book's spreads but the content of the blessings' attempts to be inclusive results in feelings of vague confusion. The illustrations are pleasantly diverse, detailed, and eye-catching and add some definition to the vaguely inclusive text.
Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter
By: Aida Salazar
Illustrated by: Molly Mendoza
Honor
Reviewed by: Lara Lleverino
Also read and recommended by: Deanna Knoll
Beautifully vivid illustrations that fairly leap from the page in a picture book about a strong young girl who isn't willing to stand on the sidelines after the death of her father and brothers in a fight between the Mexican government and citizens who support the rights of the Catholic church in a dispute over the limits of separation between church and state. There is a lamentable dearth of non-fiction picture books about the country on our southern border. So much of Mexican history isn't known or presented in English picture books and this Caldecott honor book works toward what we can hope is a trend of informing accessible titles that introduce English readers to the rich tapestry of Mexican history.
There Was a Party for Langston
By: Jason Reynolds
Illustrated by: Jerome Pumphrey and Jarrett Pumphrey
Honor
Reviewed by: Deanna Knoll
Also read and recommended by: Lara Lleverino
How can I possibly begin to sum up this beautiful book full of word pictures and sleek and warm and joyful and engaging art? Based on a picture of Maya Angelou and Amiri Baraka dancing together at a party for Langston Hughes, the author and illustrator brothers have created a story full of Langston Hughes’ poetry combined with the people who came to celebrate him, at a library no less! The illustrators ingeniously used the poet's own words to create pictures for the poem they were illustrating—it's enchanting.
I have so many favorite parts of this book, but the one that particularly sticks in my mind is the image of the books (and their authors) listening in on their party, the heads of the authors sticking their heads out of the books.
What this book did for me was to send me straight to my shelves to read some of Langston Hughes poetry for myself, which is what every good picture book biography should do—point the reader toward the subject so you want to know more!
★
REVIEW TEAM FAVORITE
The Truth About Dragons
By: Julie Leung
Illustrated by: Hanna Cha
Honor
Reviewed by: Sarah Kim
Also read and recommended by: Deanna Knoll, Jeannette Tulis, Lara Lleverino, Sandy Hall
I have thought about dragons and how they are a part of both Eastern and Western cultures, but in such different ways. Like one of the lines in this story, "Some who cannot travel more than one path may demand that you choose between the clouds and the caves," I've heard arguments that dragons should always represent evil in stories, and while I can appreciate the ideas that lie behind that viewpoint, I have wondered what that means for my biracial children, whose Asian heritage is also a part of who they are. This picture book invites children like my own to embrace all aspects of their heritage. The illustrations are stunning with lots of detail.
