Review by New York Times Review
Young children will delight in these sweetly charming summertime picture books. SMILEY'S DREAM BOOK Written and illustrated by Jeff Smith Smith's capacious imagination takes flight, literally, in this picture book starring the happy-go-lucky, slightly dim Smiley Bone from the iconic Bone graphic novel series. Smiley takes a walk in the woods, counting the birds he sees, and finds himself flying, too. There's a suspenseful turn, and a surprise ending when he wakes and realizes it was all a dream. If you plan to steer a child toward the Bone books later (and you should!), this is a terrific introduction to a world full of wonder and unexpected rewards. 32 pp. Scholastic. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) THE SANDCASTLE THAT LOLA BUILT By Megan Maynor. Illustrated by Kate Berube. The joys of a day at the beach - along with those inevitable moments of frustration, too - are packed into this story of a girl building a sandcastle. There's a "dude with a Frisbee" who at first steps right on it, then helps fix it. There's a little guy with a bulldozer and a girl from Minnesota who end up helping, too. There's the wave that wipes their masterpiece away, and then the sweet moment of realizing they've formed a spontaneous "we" and can start building again. Berube's delightful paintand-collage illustrations capture an easy, playful beach mood, with a hint of mystery in the ocean and sky. 32 pp. Alfred A. Knopf. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) DUDE! By Aaron Reynolds. Illustrated by Dan Santat. So much action and humor, so few words - just one, in fact (see the title), written in capitals or lowercase, in speech bubbles, or streeeeetched out. Expressed in the cheerfully bonkers illustrations by Santat, a Caldecott medalist, "Dude!" tells the story of a platypus and a beaver who go surfing together and meet a shark. A friendly one, it turns out, who wants to catch some waves with them: "Dude...?" he offers when they meet. More than half the fun, of course, is in reading this book out loud. Be ready for even the youngest kids to "read" it, too. 40 pp. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) PIE IS FOR SHARING By Stephanie Parsley Ledyard. Illustrated by Jason Chin. A book about sharing doesn't sound like much fun, but this one takes all the sting out. Ledyard's spare text is a poetic ode to things that are easy to share (a ball, a climbing tree, a story, a hideout), with an acknowledgment of one that's hard (a best friend). Chin's sublime watercolor and gouache illustrations, a master class in visual storytelling, follow a group of family and friends on a daylong picnic near the beach. Once the sun starts setting it's clear this is the Fourth of July, adding even greater resonance - a nation is, after all, above all a shared idea. 40 pp. Neal Porter/Roaring Brook. $17.99. (Ages 2 to 6) 40 pp. Candlewick. $16.99. (Ages 3 to 7) GOLDFISH ON VACATION By Sally Lloyd-Jones. Illustrated by Leo Espinosa. Enjoying summer in the city requires ingenuity, as this entertaining tale - based on reallife events - shows. Three siblings glumly pass time in their hot Manhattan apartment until the broken fountain down the street gets cleaned up and a sign suddenly appears on it, inviting goldfish to take a vacation. A neighborhood hangout is born, as all the residents stop by to visit their fish. Espinosa's sunny illustrations are a visual party. The only downer, we learn in a note, is that once the fountain was fixed for good, the goldfish summer vacations ended. 40 pp. Schwartz & Wade/Random House. $16.99. (Ages 4 to 8) SUN Written and illustrated by Sam Usher "Rain" and "Snow" came first in this series of stories about a boy who's stuck at home with his grandpa in all kinds of weather. Now it's a scorching summer day, and as in the previous books, the delicately handled subtext is that it takes patience and imagination to navigate the generational divide and get through the long hours. The pair "gather their provisions" and go for a walk, which the boy pictures as crossing the desert. Then they stop at a pirate's cove, picnicking with a merry band of buccaneers. Usher's jaunty visual style is a mash-up of two British greats, Quentin Blake and John Burningham. SAFFRON ICE CREAM Written and illustrated by Rashin Kheiriyeh When a little girl named Rashin is on her way to the beach in Brooklyn for the first time, she remembers what it was like to go to the beach when her family lived in Iran, where the men's and women's sections were strictly separated (severe-looking burka-clad ladies patrol) and saffron ice cream was her favorite treat. With her colorful, exuberant folk-art illustrations and upbeat, friendly tone, Rashin makes a daunting cross-cultural leap seem as easy as a summer breeze. 40 pp. Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic. $17.99. (Ages 4 to 8) THE GRAND EXPEDITION Written and illustrated by Emma Adbage There are those (like me) who feel that "camping out" in the backyard is a high point of childhood adventure, and this adorable book from Sweden confirms it. Two small siblings inform their dad of their plans, and after gathering their supplies they pitch a tent and hunker down. No, they don't make it through the whole night out there, but does that even matter? With winsome mixedmedia illustrations that capture all the most telling details, and a fine-tuned ear for the way kids think and talk, Adbage understands the fun that can be found in a child's everyday reality. 40 pp. Enchanted Lion. $16.95. (Ages 4 to 8) maria russo is the children's books editor of the Book Review.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [April 7, 2019]
Review by Booklist Review
Rashin is excited about her first trip to an American beach. As she and her family make their way from Brooklyn to Coney Island, Rashin recounts another beach trip one to the Caspian Sea, in Iran, where she's from. That adventure begins with a special halim (savory porridge) breakfast, a five-hour drive through the forest, and a picnic lunch. She has sweet memories of swimming with her best friend, Azadeh, and eating saffron ice cream, so this trip is laden with hope. Readers might be surprised to learn about Iranian beaches being segregated by gender, with Islamic beach guards enforcing the rules. Vibrant illustrations bursting with color and texture complement Rashin's anticipation, especially when she sees an ice-cream truck by the beach. Disappointment hits hard, however, when there is no saffron flavor but it is short-lived. After all, Coney Island has much to offer, and all ends well. This charming story is a perfect summertime pick and a refreshingly upbeat, relatable account of an immigrant experience.--Chaudhri, Amina Copyright 2018 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2- A young girl enjoys her first visit to the beach at Coney Island while remembering her past family outings in Iran. Trips to the Caspian Sea entailed adventurous car drives listening to Persian music, saffron ice cream, and her best friend Azadeh. Now, in Brooklyn, her family takes the subway filled with "all sorts of people" and music, but there is no Azadeh. Bright oil-and-acrylic paints on handmade paper gives texture and delightful energy to the presentation, adding to the joyous, celebratory excitement of a first visit to a new place. The voice of young Rashin is infectious with curiosity as she wonders what it will be like on the beach in New York City and if there will be different rules. In Iran, women and men were separated by a screen while they sunbathed and played in the water. The women were able to "take off their covers and get a tan," and enjoy "a big party" while female guards made sure no men peeped through the canvas. The Iranian author/illustrator subtly teases out the differences between the two experiences. When young Rashin finds that there is no saffron ice cream on Coney Island she is disappointed, but a young girl suggests to her a new flavor, and a new friendship starts. VERDICT A must-purchase for libraries, especially for summer reading and beach storytime.-Danielle Jones, Multnomah County Library, OR © Copyright 2018. 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 Horn Book Review
Kheiriyeh delivers an entertaining, heartfelt story based on her own childhood memories of family outings to the beach. Young narrator Rashin compares the beach in her birthplace of Iran to the beach in her new home of Brooklyn, providing a glimpse of some of the Islamic beach rules in places in Iran. Big, long curtains divided the sea into two sections--one side for men to swim in and the other side for women. Young Rashin learned that breaking those rules (accidentally or not) can create chaos but can be funny and exciting, too. Kheiriyehs sensory text evokes the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes experienced along the journey from each home to the beach. Driving for five hours to the Caspian Sea or taking the Q train to Coney Island; listening to Persian music on the car radio or outdoor music in the city; passing through the forest or by redbrick apartment buildings--each is an adventure. For Rashin, the absence of two highlights of her beach fun in Iran--her best friend and saffron ice cream--is a stumbling block, but a new friend and a chocolate-crunch cone at Coney Island help. The textured oil and acrylic illustrations are bright and colorful, capturing the shades of nature and the vibrant and earthy colors of the city. The images of the Arabic/Farsi/English signs in Iran are a perfect context-setting touch. aishah abdul-musawwir (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Rashin, a young Iranian girl living in Brooklyn, heads to the Coney Island beach with her family, reminiscing on similar outings she had in the past to the Caspian Sea in Iran and comparing those to the present trip.At the center of the story are two short anecdotes: One involves three little boys breaking the rules of the gender-segregated, curtain-split Iranian beach and taking a peek on the other side of the divide where women gather. The ensuing chaos is vividly described and illustrated by Kheiriyehwith women "shouting and jumping out of the water and covering themselves with towels, newspapers and umbrellas." Order and harmony are, however, soon restored after female members of the Islamic beach guarddepicted as stern, unsmiling women in black attirepatch the holes in the fabric and allow for beach activities to resume. (Since there's been no connection made between Islam and the segregated beach, the episode may require unpacking for children unfamiliar with the practice.) The second anecdote, which inspired the title of the book, tells of Rashin's sadness in not finding saffron-flavored ice cream. Her sadness is quickly overcome after a newfound friend, Aijah, a pigtailed black girl, suggests she try a new flavor, chocolate crunch, which she readily enjoys. Lively and imaginative illustrations on two-page spreads adorn the simple premise of the booka juxtaposition of two beach experiences, one Iranian and one American.Genuine. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
