Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The start of a new school year is just as nerve-wracking for backpacks as it is for kids, at least in the experience of the quivering anthropomorphic knapsack narrating this story by the creators of I'm Terrified of Bath Time. From the dark depths of the closet where it spends the summer relaxing, a teal backpack immediately engages readers: "The first day of school always makes me nervous." From there, it lists the indignities and fears it faces in the hands of an equally anxious white-presenting student with a blond ponytail--from having books and binders shoved down its throat to noticing that "everyone else seems to belong." Luckily, a chance entanglement results in the narrator overcoming its biggest fear of all: feeling "like I don't fit in." Toro's creamy-textured mixed-media illustrations extend the text's themes with engaging, empathetic details. The combination is sure to boost readers' confidence as they navigate their own classroom return. Ages 4--8. (July)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 2--Backpack's relaxing summer days of lounging in the closet with Hamper and Winter Coat are wrapping up, and now the zipper-mouthed green pack with big expressive eyes must leave behind his closet chums and return to bustling school hallways. Everyone knows the first day of school can be grueling for kids, but few realize the struggle of backpacks. Being shoved against walls, stuffed into dark lockers, and left on sticky cafeteria floors makes Backpack feel that it doesn't belong anywhere. Aside from the robot pin on its side, will Backpack have to carry on through the chaos all year long alone? Matching the style of I'm Terrified of Bath Time, Rich and Toro rally again, giving a humorous voice to another underappreciated everyday object. Toro's cartoon watercolor and digital illustrations outlined in black are playful, expressive, and tell a story beyond the text, revealing that the pale-skinned, blonde-haired girl lugging Backpack around school is actually just as nervous and uncomfortable. The anthropomorphic backpack visibly conveys a range of emotions young readers may also feel on the first day of school, including nervousness, dread, and confusion. Elementary-aged readers will empathize with Backpack's first day of school anxiety, while chuckling at the backpack's unintentionally humorous point-of-view. VERDICT An amusing title to send young readers back to school with a giggle. Libraries will certainly want to give this book a place on their shelves.--Emily Brush
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
Everyone's nervous about going to school--even your backpack! After months of relaxing in the closet over the summer, a green backpack quivers with nerves when it hears the words back to school. The backpack has to be pried from the closet by a light-skinned child with a blond ponytail. Going to school is, we learn, a far more terrifying prospect for a backpack. "First you open my mouth and shove a bunch of strange new books and binders down my throat." Slung over the child's shoulders, the backpack "can't even see where I'm going." At school, the backpack is smashed, stuffed, and dragged. But the worst part of school is that the backpack doesn't seem to fit in anywhere--a feeling that will be familiar to many readers. All that changes when it crashes into another backpack worn by a child with dark skin, short curly hair, and glasses. The punny moral of the story? Life is better with a friend "because you don't have to carry everything alone." This funny romp will leave readers feeling empowered for their own first days. Strategically placed black pages with white lettering ramp up the drama. In Toro's exaggerated cartoon illustrations, the backpack is wonderfully expressive, its eyes and zipper mouth conveying panic, nausea, a longing to belong, and, finally, happiness. (This book was reviewed digitally.) Will give children the emotional distance to process their own first-day jitters. (Picture book. 4-6) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
