Book Reviews

Mr. Tiger by Davide Cali

| Tasha
Cover image for Mr. Tiger.

Mr. Tiger by Davide Cali, illustrated by Miguel Tanco (9781849767477)

Mr. Tiger is a wrestler with world-famous moves in the ring. His most famous move of all is The Leap of the Tiger, where he flies across the ring. Mr. Tiger has rivals in the ring and also friends who help him, but after the match all of the wrestlers are actually friends. But outside the ring and wrestling, Mr. Tiger doesn’t have any friends except for Fifi, his fluffy little dog. Mr. Tiger would like to be friends with someone, in particular a woman who works in a cafe named Lily. But Mr. Tiger can’t seem to work up the courage to speak with her at all. His worries about Lily are starting to effect his skills in the ring too, so he decides he must speak to her with a little pushing from his wrestling buddies. Time after time though, Mr. Tiger fails to speak up. Until one day, Fifi gets free and bumps right into Lily and her dog. Now it’s time to see if Lily likes wrestling at all!

There is a wonderful contrast between the loud yellow mask of Mr. Tiger, his dazzling moves in the ring in front of large crowds and then his shyness and lack of friends. Mr. Tiger wears his mask throughout the book, even when going about his day-to-day life. There is an added sense of whimsy when he wonders if Lily will accept him being a wrestler while wearing the mask. The text is brisk and vibrant with action in the ring, the humor of wrestler names, and just enough time to know Mr. Tiger is very lonely.

Tanco’s illustrations are bold and bright. He plays up the broadness of Mr. Tiger’s shoulders. Then there is the pink fluff that is Fifi snuggled against the yellow tiger mask. It is all clever and funny setting just the right tone about loneliness and shyness.

A clever mix of wrestling in the ring and wrestling with making a friend. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy provided by Tate.

Himawari House by Harmony Becker

| Tasha
Cover image for Himawari House.

Himawari House by Harmony Becker (9781250235565)

Nao grew up not fitting in in the United States, hoping to find a place that felt more like home in Japan. She had visited as a child, but now was going to be attending Japanese cram school. She moved into Himawari House, a house shared with several other students, all attending the school but at different levels. Nao discovers that fitting in isn’t as simple as a shared language, especially when she doesn’t speak it as well as she thought. Two of the girls who also live in the house have left their own countries to study in Japan. They all learn to find a way to connect with both Japanese culture and their own. Whether it is through shared food, watching shows together around a laptop, or reconnecting with family they left behind.

This graphic novel is wonderful. There is so much tangled in the stories of the three girls. Each of the teens is a unique person with specific experiences that led them to come to Japan, whether it was well-planned or almost a whim. They all face difficulties and handle them in their own ways, which tell the reader even more about who they are. Add in a touch of romance and their search for a place to belong becomes painfully personal and amazingly universal at the same time.

The art is phenomenal. From silly nods to manga style to serious moments that shine with a play of light and shadow to character studies that reveal so much in a single image of one of the characters, the illustrations run a full gamut of styles and tones. The language in the book is also fascinating, sharing the English mixed with other languages, changes in linguistic formats and the blank moments that happen when learning a language. It’s all so cleverly done.

A great graphic novel that explores finding a place in the world to belong. Appropriate for ages 13-18.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by First Second.

A Perfect Day by Jennifer Yerkes

| Tasha
Cover image for A Perfect Day.

A Perfect Day by Jennifer Yerkes (9780802855770)

The day starts with a peaceful song of birds and crickets. The hornets buzz in and out of their paper nest and the frogs croak from the lily pads. The melody continues through the morning, until the weather changes. Dark clouds enter the sky accompanied by the crash of thunder cymbals. The rhythm of falling rain takes up the beat. The rain drives down, filling the air. Then it ends with plunks of drops into puddles. The symphony is complete.

This picture book is beautifully simple. The text is carries the theme of music throughout the day, applying it cleverly to the sounds of the meadow. The various noises made by the animals will have children joining into the noise and creating their own music along the way. Admirably even with the onset of the storm, the pacing and feel of the book stays the same. There is no panic at the natural storm but a calmness that accompanies the noise and rhythm.

The illustrations are done with lovely fine lines that celebrate the vegetation and inhabitants of the meadow. Most of the animals are given a color that is their own from the orange fox to the green frog to the yellow bird. This will invite conversation about the illustrations, colors and what is happening on the pages. Some of the pages are wonderful in their simple drama such as the spread of rainfall that covers the meadow.

A musical look at nature. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy provided by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

One Million Oysters on Top of the Mountain by Alex Nogues

| Tasha
Cover image for One Million Oysters on Top of the Mountain.

One Million Oysters on Top of the Mountain by Alex Nogues, illustrated by Miren Asiain Lora, translated by Lawrence Schimel (9780802855695)

Written by a Spanish geologist, this nonfiction picture book explores how a million fossilized oysters can possibly be found on a mountaintop. The book begins with exploring several landscape scenes, pointing out how simple it is to ignore the rocks that make up our world. The book moves from a child discovering an oyster shell on a hilltop and also explores various scientific discoveries in geology as the reason for the oysters is explained. Concepts such as strata in the earth, the immense length of geological time, and the movements of tectonic plates are explored and explained. Readers will leave with a great understanding of our changing world, much of which may have been underwater long before.

In this Spanish import, the writing by Nogues is what makes this book work so well. His tone is one of wonder and discovery. He writes from the perspective of discovering a new question, forming a hypothesis and then fully explaining the scientific terms and findings. The book offers a great look at geology and earth science for young children, never speaking down to them, instead explaining and lifting their understanding of the world upwards.

The illustrations are filled with earth tones and green punctuated by the whites of bones, fossils and oyster shells. Many of the illustrations help to give context to scientific concepts in a playful way. The scenes include children discovering fossils, exploring redwood trees, and much more.

A fascinating look at the transformations our earth has undergone. Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Reviewed from copy provided by Eerdmans Publishing Company.

Your Legacy by Schele Williams

| Tasha
Cover image for Your Legacy.

Your Legacy: A Bold Reclamation of Our Enslaved History by Schele Williams, illustrated by Tonya Engel (9781419748752)

This picture book honors the history of African Americans in America. Looking at Africa first, as a place of pride, filled with a long history of heritage and kingdoms. When Africans were loaded onto ships and taken into slavery, they brought so many of the qualities that they had in Africa. Their freedom was taken into a brutal system, but their intelligence allowed them to bridge their different languages with music. They loved one another as family, secretly learned to read, and smuggled messages for one another. Some managed to escape with determination and bravery. Black Americans were inventors of engines, farm equipment, and furniture, though they rarely got credit for their ideas. They created jazz, ice cream, peanut butter, and the blood plasma bank. The book ties all of these qualities to modern figures who exemplify them, showing how the heritage carries through ancestors to today.

Filled with a sense of pride from the very first pages, this picture book offers a way to speak to children about slavery without creating shame. There is a strong sense of resilience throughout the book, of people who not only endured but survived and continued to invent and create. The book allows space for slavery as part of African American history, but frames it in terms of the qualities of character it took to survive. This is history that is not shared in schools that then turns to the accomplishments of Black Americans throughout our history.

Engel’s illustrations are full of connection and joy. She uses deep and bright colors, creating scenes where African Americans stand shoulder to shoulder in solidarity, work side by side, and sing together.

A necessary purchase for public and school libraries looking for a way to teach African American history in a better way. Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Abrams Books for Young Readers.

The Swallow’s Flight by Hilary McKay

| Tasha
Cover image for The Swallow’s Flight.

The Swallow’s Flight by Hilary McKay (9781665900911)

From the dawn of World War II through the course of the war, four young people grow up. There is Ruby, born with speckled birthmarks on her face, who is bullied for them and spends much of her time alone or in her family’s British news shop. There is Kate, who has a constant cough and anxiety and who is looked after by her older siblings until they have to leave the house. In Germany, Erik and Hans grow up as best friends living in the same building. They tend to swallow chicks together, dream of working in a zoo and pastry shop, and spend time at the airfield. As the war progresses and the Nazis take over, they become part of the Luftwaffe. The girls are also impacted by the war, rescuing a dog who has been released by his owner, moving to safer areas due to the bombing, and helping neighbors understand what is happening in Europe. Both the English and German characters have loving uncles who appear in their lives, fix things and set things up and then disappear again. As these characters survive the war, their lives impact upon one another in tragic and unexpected ways.

I am a great fan of McKay’s work. Her writing takes on serious issues yet she manages to truly show the deep humanity of all of her characters through small memorable moments that impact their lives. It may be a wild and drunken Christmas that ends with a crash, it may be saving a diminutive elderly woman with fierceness and physical strength, it may be rescuing a very smelly dog from the streets, or it could be visiting with women who have staunch victory gardens and a tendency toward hoarding. Each one of these is so well written and described that the scenes are vivid and the moments uniquely special.

The characters themselves are also beautifully written, each with their own tone and style. It is particularly noteworthy to have two German characters from World War II who retain their humor and humanity through the entire story. They are written with a deep empathy for the situation of the German people during the Nazi regime and an eye towards also showing that families did what they could to save neighbors. The English girls are a delightful mix of bravery, steadiness and wild adventures that keep the book lighter than it could have been.

Another gorgeous read from McKay, this time illuminating both sides of World War II. Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy provided by Margaret K. McElderry Books.

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

| Tasha
Cover image for Little Thieves.

Little Thieves by Margaret Owen (9781250191908)

Vanja has a plan to escape the powerful forces in her life. It involves a string of stolen magical pearls that turn her into the princess and stealing a lot of jewelry. As the adopted daughter of Death and Fortune, she has only to ask for their help, but she refuses to be servant to either one of them in return. Abandoned by her mother to them, Vanja knows she can trust no one since everyone in her life has always betrayed her. Caught in a new trap where her body is steadily turning into jewels, she must find a way out of the curse before the month’s end and before she has to marry the violent and abusive margrave as the princess. She may have to start trusting someone after all.

This book is delicious. It is a mixture of thievery, cleverness, magic and betrayal. From the author of The Merciful Crow series, this is a new fantasy world which is beautifully detailed. Owen has layered royalty, elected imperials, inheritance laws, dark nightmare magic, forest gods, high gods, and one human thief. Untangling it all alongside Vanja is a true joy, the ripples of each discovery carrying through the entire tale. It’s a puzzle of a fantasy that is unique and very special.

At the heart of the puzzle is Vanja, who also goes by Gisele and Gretl in the story. Her brilliance at finding relative safety in a world that sees her as disposable is amazing. Her history of trauma rings so real, helping readers understand her lack of trust. Owen uses these twists and turns to great effect, surprising the reader along the way to the breathless ending where things are not as they may seem. Devastating and so smart.

One of the best fantasies of the year. Get this in the hands of feminist fantasy fans. Appropriate for ages 13-18.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Henry Holt and Co.

Sweater Weather by Matt Phelan

| Tasha
Cover image for Sweater Weather.

Sweater Weather by Matt Phelan (9780062934147)

It’s a lovely autumn day outside, so Papa Bear tells his seven baby bears to get their sweaters on. They head upstairs to get ready while Papa sits downstairs knitting. But it turns out that the baby bears need some help getting dressed successfully. After some disentangling, Papa gets them ready. All except for one, whose sweater unravels and he to be tucked into the stocking cap that Papa had been knitting. By the time they are all ready to go, it’s evening. The bear family makes the most of the nighttime, watching their breath frost the air and seeing a comet cross the sky. Then it’s time for pajamas on and bed.

Every parent will recognize the joy of getting ready for a day outside the house. This book is so cozy that the frustration of not getting ready quickly makes time for knitting and some extra hugs. Papa Bear is a delight of an adult character, seemingly on top of it all until the door opens and reveals how long it has actually taken for them all to get ready. With few words, the book relies on the illustrations to tell the story and share the love of this furry family.

Cozy, funny and full of autumn spice. Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from e-galley provided by Greenwillow Books.

Sato the Rabbit: The Moon by Yuki Ainoya

| Tasha
Cover image for Sato the Rabbit: The Moon.

Sato the Rabbit: The Moon by Yuki Ainoya (9781592703067)

This is the second book in the Sato the Rabbit trilogy. In a series of chapters, Sato explores the world around him. When the moon disappears into a nearby thicket, Sato pulls it out and makes it into a boat. Exploring a brown, dry field, he discovers a green sprout that turns like a screw and soon green is popping up all around. On a rainy day, Sato sets up a rain party where he captures the sheets of rain with ribbons. Other stories have fallen leaves that roll up into a rug, the moon turned into a blanket, and the wonder of a hole in a hat.

This Japanese picture book series is surprising and surreal. Just when you think you know where each of the short chapters is headed, a page turn takes it in an entirely different direction. It’s these little surprises along the way that make the book so charming. Each chapter features Sato doing amazing things with regular items we interact with in our world too.

The illustrations add to the fun of the surreal stories. They make what is being said in the brief text come alive as wondrous things happen in each story.

A charming addition to the Sato series. Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from copy provided by Enchanted Lion Books.