Review by Booklist Review
Nina is an Everychild with a hint of attitude. She certainly knows what pushes her buttons, and with their extensive experience writing for kids, her creators Kroll and Knight have touched upon the very things that make many children mad. The two-page pieces feature a full-page picture, in which Nina voices her complaint, opposite a comic-strip depiction of what went down. In the first, Nina proclaims, When you don't know what I like . . . that makes me mad! And why shouldn't it? As readers see, when she asks what's for dinner, her father assures her it'll be something she likes. Then it turns out to be fish. Fish! Another familiar aggrievement comes when she's promised ice cream, and then given some weak excuse as to why it's not convenient to have ice cream right now. The helpful endpapers explain how to read comics with kids and levels the book with Lexile, Guided Reading, and Reading Recovery scores. Nina, drawn with affection and exuberance, should make lots of new, equally offended friends.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Benjamin always seems to be in the right place to assist a friend, as when he and Rabbit are stuck in a snowstorm and Rabbit is happy to take shelter underneath his sizable belly, making the bear a living snowdrift. The overlying theme through all of the single-page vignettes is Benjamin's willingness to help his pals. His laugh-out-loud antics are brilliantly displayed in easy-to-follow, colorful panels. Able to leap great ravines, find his way out of a maze, and walk on the ocean floor, he is a character that kids will enjoy spending time with. Each spread in Nina shows a scenario in which the child is angry. She is frustrated "when you don't let me help." and proves to her mother that she really can change the baby's diaper. She is annoyed when "You don't know what I like." ("I hate fish!") Of course, it's not her fault she can't get her clothes on fast and correctly. It's not her fault that mom forgets her promises. It's not her fault that her parents make her go to bed so early she can't see the show she wants to. If only parents realized how hard it is to be a kid. Knight's charming illustrations evoke the plethora of emotions Nina endures as she tries to get her parents' attention. In the end, though, her mother comes through. Nina's strong and lovable personality is reminiscent of Eloise (also illustrated by Knight), Ramona, and Judy Moody.-Carol Hirsche, Provo City Library, UT (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A young child presents a catalogue of timeless irritations and injustices in a 1976 outing with art and text lightly massaged and reformatted for newly independent readers.From "When I do something nice and no one cares..." or "When you get mad at ME and I didn't do it..." to "When I NEED you and you make me WAIT..." Nina's complaints range from actual injustice to self-absorbed whining and so have near-universal applicability. Each general grievance is paired to a specific incident detailed in comic-bookstyle panels on the facing page, such as a painting that distracted parents don't praise properly, a promise of ice cream that doesn't pan out, a playmate who abruptly runs off with someone else or clothing that just won't go on the right way. Fresh and buoyant despite the old-style television or occasional other period detail, Knight's art places Ninashort haired, dressed in overalls and looking androgynous, in contrast to the girlier figure that Christine Davenier made of her in a 2002 edition (published as That Makes Me Mad)between siblings in a comfortably domestic setting. He captures her feelings in a broad range of wonderfully expressive body language ranging from hunched-shoulder, irritated frowns to melodramatic sprawls. Aposthumous publication for Kroll; Knight is still going strong and working on an autobiography.A little parental TLC finally calms the storm, as it usually does. (Graphic early reader. 6-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
