Review by Booklist Review
In Ms. Underwood's classroom, Kyle often needs help with reading, writing, cutting, and gluing. Zahra enjoys assisting the boy, who is kind, generous, and funny, and she basks in her teacher's appreciation. But at recess, she overhears classmates Tess and Ashley belittling Kyle, and then the girls ask Zahra why she helps him. The next day, aware that the girls are watching, Zahra refuses to work with Kyle, which hurts his feelings. The girls' approving smiles do nothing to ease her misery when Kyle says, "You're mean now." As narrator, she reports, "My face feels hot, my heart cold." The next year, after adjusting to a larger school, she sees a new girl who reminds her of Kyle and offers to help her. In an author's note, Faruqi shares the childhood memory that inspired the story. The tightly written narrative presents Zahra's initial satisfaction, her emotional turmoil, and her sense of shame with equal candor. Using a warm, autumnal palette, Prevost creates mixed-media illustrations that bring Zahra, her classmates, and their teacher to life. From the author of Lailah's Lunchbox (2015) and Amira's Picture Day (2021), this perceptive picture book could lead to discussions about handling peer pressure, dealing with ethical predicaments, and learning from one's mistakes.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
This painfully honest look at the way unkindness can poison a classroom atmosphere is narrated by Zahra, a brown-skinned child who takes pride in helping white student Kyle, who "isn't great at handwriting or cutting or gluing either." Classmates Tess and Ashley gossip: "Kyle is such a baby" and ask Zahra, "Why do you help him?" That's all it takes. Zahra stops helping Kyle ("You're mean now," Kyle says), and every classroom interaction subsequently becomes freighted with her consciousness of the girls' scorn. Faruqi gives careful attention to all of the emotions Zahra feels, the better for readers to identify them in their own experience. Prevost contributes smudgy, muted tone images of sweet-faced, dot-eyed children of varying skin tones whose expressions are easy to read. Readers may recognize times when they felt as Zahra does--and vow to do better. Ages 4--8. (July)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3--Earnest Zahra, an energetic girl with brown skin and black hair, is always happy to help a boy in her class until the day she is teased for spending time with a weird-looking "baby." Kylem, who has pale skin, is generous, great at drawing, and good at telling jokes, but he has trouble with reading, writing, and cutting. Zahra works so well with him that their teacher calls her a "super helper." But when two girls question why she volunteers to do so, Zahra closes Kyle out while hating the sound of her own mean voice. She doesn't know how to act on her remorse until the next year when she is at a big new school without Kyle. The minute an anxious new girl arrives, Zahra wastes no time in offering to help. Children will immediately recognize the dynamics at play in this diverse classroom. Zahra's emotions are vividly depicted through action, from riding high on the swings, to sharing a joke with Kyle, to blinking the right amount of blinks so she doesn't cry. Mixed media illustrations, with the feel of those by G. Brian Karas, are a wonderful match and amplify the feelings in the text through body language and facial expressions. VERDICT Lessons about kindness, regret, and making amends are all here without being the least bit didactic. An excellent conversation starter for any adults who work with groups of children.--Jan Aldrich Solow, formerly Fairfax County Public Sch., VA
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Review by Horn Book Review
Zahra's classmate Kyle struggles with reading and penmanship (and other fine motor tasks), and he sits on a large ball, instead of a chair like the other students. When their teacher asks for someone to help Kyle, Zahra always volunteers, because Kyle is generous and kind and she enjoys spending time with him. Then a group of classmates starts picking on her about it. She caves to peer pressure, avoids contact with Kyle, and refuses to help, telling him to "do it yourself!" Zahra later moves to a new school without ever having apologized to Kyle or making amends, and she is haunted by her actions (a la Woodson and Lewis's Each Kindness, rev. 1/13). She decides from then on to be the kind of person who is helpful, and reaches out to a new classmate in need of assistance. Mixed-media illustrations home in on facial expressions, ranging from openness to disapproval to delight. The strength-based representation of a child with a disability is welcome; Kyle is a whole person with some challenges but many gifts. Author and illustrator notes delve into the autobiographical roots of the story and reinforce the message that "being kind is always the right decision." Julie Hakim Azzam November/December 2021 p.69(c) Copyright 2021. 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
Learning to be kind to others can be a bumpy journey. Among Zahra's 17 very diverse classmates, Kyle is great at drawing, drumming, and other things. However, he needs help to do some others, like writing, sounding out words, and working scissors. Ms. Underwood, the teacher, chooses other students to help him every day. Zahra always holds her hand up, volunteering to be Kyle's helper, because she thinks he is generous, funny, and kind. Today she's picked and, at the end of school, is very proud to be called "a super helper" by the teacher. However, things change after two classmates tease and pressure her to stop helping the kid who "looks weird" and acts like "a baby." Although she is conflicted about her feelings and thoughts about Kyle, her new, brusque demeanor makes him say to her, "You're mean now." Beautiful and delicate details in both text and illustration situate readers physically in the school's art classroom and autumnal playground, mentally in Zahra's world full of special cooking spices like cumin and turmeric, and emotionally in her hesitation and growth. Zahra does not get to change her behavior toward Kyle or to say sorry to him. However, when she moves to a new school, she finds her truth and acts in a way she can be proud of. Zahra has brown skin, Ms. Underwood presents Black, and Kyle presents White. An illuminating glimpse into how a young child learns to trust her instinct and be kind to others. (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
