The Last Day Julian Was My Best Friend
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Jody Jensen Shaffer, illus. by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff. Two Lions, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-66251-616-0
In this suspenseful friendship narrative, Jensen Shaffer examines what happens when one companion betrays the trust of another. Anthony, portrayed with pale skin, begins by remembering the day that Julian, shown with brown skin, shared the beautiful marble Julian’s grandfather gave him—his “best present ever,” which they play with all spring. Then the treasure somehow goes missing. Repeatedly calling an idyllic day the friends spend together “the last day Julian was my best friend,” Anthony describes a pancake breakfast, a beach outing, and a campout. That night, when Julian says, “You’re my best friend,” Anthony hands over the marble with an apology, and even then, Julian believes the best: “My marble! You found it!” When realization dawns, Anthony’s confession both ends the agony of unsaid words and leads to a surprising resolution. Breezy digital slice-of-life illustrations by Lew-Vriethoff depict expressive faces and summery landscapes. Ages 5–8. (June)
Into the Mighty Sea
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Arlene Abundis, illus. by Cynthia Alonso. HarperCollins, $19.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-06-324592-1
Color becomes metaphor and means of expression in Abundis and Alonso’s vivid story of an artistic child grappling with sensory and emotional overload. At the start of the party for narrator Mariel’s hermanito, “never-ending orange hugs,/ blushing pink besos,/ and waves of green ‘¡Holas!’/ squish my home with too many touches/ and too much noise.” The child finds solace by making art in the garden with similarly wired Papi, but when Mariel’s hermanito acts out, “red clouds ink angry thoughts” and result in a “mighty sea” of emotion. Utilizing swirling colors, thin-lined illustrations embrace surrealism in scenes of Mariel rowing a paper boat with pencil as paddle. As the child’s thoughts calm (“let it flow—then try to let it go,” Papi says), the color palette fades and red’s meaning shifts to “love.” Text and artwork alike aptly portray overwhelm in this perceptive work. An author’s note concludes. Ages 4–8. (June)
Do You Even Know Me?
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Reem Faruqi, illus. by Ani Bushry. HarperCollins, $19.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-06-320618-2
When Salma, a Muslim child portrayed with brown skin, watches the news, she notices that the reporter’s “eyebrows go down and her mouth frowns” when she says the word Muslim. Soon, when Salma’s best friend is absent from school, a pale-skinned classmate named Luke taunts her in the cafeteria, then intentionally bumps into her on the playground. In front of their teacher, he says, “If I see bullying, I’ll tell you, Ms. Lin.” But when Luke whispers “Muzzlim” to her, Salma reveals his bullying: “I’m Muslim. My name and my religion mean peace,” she says. And when Luke’s best friend is absent, Salma, leaning on tenets of Islam, treats him with empathy and kindness. Bushry’s brightly cartooned classroom scenes pair well with this empowering story of strength in the face of Islamophobia. Creators’ notes offer context. Ages 4–8. (May)
Monster Hands
Karen Kane and Jonaz McMillan, illus. by Dion MBD. Penguin/Paulsen, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-593-53229-4
Among the titles Milo reads one night, one is “about a monster under the bed. Milo should not have read that book.” Frightened, he uses a flashlight to signal Mel, his best friend who lives across the street. Through their facing windows, the two use ASL to communicate about Milo’s fears. Mel suggests that Milo use “monster hands”—vertically stacked palms facing each other, fingers curled—to create shadows that will “ROAR,” “CHOMP,” and “LAUGH” the monster away. Kane and debut author McMillan build suspense with each of the duo’s attempts to banish the monster, creating a lively collaboration that gives way to a tender gesture between the friends. MBD employs vibrant gradient hues to create looming shadows and dynamically highlight ASL signs, some portrayed in full. Milo has pale skin and brown hair; Mel is portrayed with brown skin and brown hair. Ages 3–7. (May)
Insha’Allah, No, Maybe So
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Rhonda and Nadia Roumani, illus. by Olivia Aserr. Holiday House, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-8234-5441-9
Ranya responds with frustration after her mother answers “insha’Allah” to multiple asks; “You said insha’Allah, and that means no!” But her mother reassures her that the term means, instead, “God willing.” As Ranya asks further questions, her mom explains that the word has many connotations: “We say it when we want something to happen, but we don’t know if it will,” as well as “because sometimes things happen that we can’t control” and “to talk about our hopes and dreams.” After her mother agrees to stop using the phrase “when I really want to say no, or when I don’t have an answer,” Ranya again takes up the original asks. Mom does her best, but Ranya has the last word—insha’Allah—in the Roumanis’ warm, playful introduction to a term used by Muslims and Arabic-speaking people globally. Aserr’s digital and watercolor illustrations focus on domestic and neighborhood scenes that foreground the brown-skinned duo. An author’s note concludes. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 3–7. (May)
Race to Kindness
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Orion Jean, illus. by Darshika Varma. Zonderkidz, $19.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-310-15255-2
Jean makes a motivational debut, urging kindness via perky, idea-filled rhymes in this acrostic-style picture book that constructs the word kind. While K “reminds you to keep your eyes open.../ for deeds to be done/ or kind words to be spoken,” I signals inclusion, N suggests that “nothing is too small/ to make a big mark./ Those small acts of kindness/ will still light a spark,” and D urges readers to “do something about it.” Supporting lines emphasize how friendliness can feel while offering myriad examples of gestures that might make a difference in someone’s life—from sharing food to calling a loved one. Employing jewel-tone coloring, Varma depicts people of various abilities and skin tones in jubilant scenes of generosity in action. Ages 4–8. (May)
Ned and the Great Garden Hamster Race
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Kim Hillyard. Penguin Workshop, $14.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-593-65904-5
In Hillyard’s feel-good tale, a roly-poly hamster named Ned learns to pay kindness forward during an adventuresome race. On the day of the big event, it’s not long before “ready to win” Ned takes the lead. Prioritizing his drive to come in first, he “zooms” past a slug in need of direction, some hungry pigeons, and a figure stuck in a deep hole—“but Ned does not have time to stop and help.” When the potato-shaped protagonist gets into a tight spot mid-race, the unexpected generosity of a passerby causes him to rethink what winning can look like, resulting in a mid-race backtrack and a memorable takeaway that sees all the funny, furry runners come together. Thick, smudgy smears of color and crayon-like markings give scenes a naif quality, while googly eyes and buckteeth lend the racers a likable goofiness that helps successfully deliver a message of kindliness. Ages 4–8. (July)
Dare to Be Daring
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Chelsea Lin Wallace, illus. by Lian Cho. Abrams, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-4197-6067-9
“Today, I will dare to be daring./ It is something I’ve wanted to try.// No sidelines for me—I’m jumping in, whee!/ I’ll dodge it, I’ll duck it, I’ll fly!” Lin Wallace’s upbeat rhymes riff on the titular phrase to encourage bravery in the face of various experiences via this upbeat picture book. As arrayed children conquer common childhood challenges such as performing onstage, trying a new food, going to the dentist, and more, a trip to the basement lurks, on repeat, as a seemingly impossible act of courage (“No, nope, not happening”) until, at last, even that feels achievable. Paint smudges and squiggles form a colorful backdrop for Cho’s round-faced figures, portrayed with various abilities and skin tones, as they smoothly map to the text. Relatable, motivating messaging seems sure to strengthen readers’ resolve. Ages 4–8. (July)
I Am Friendly: Confessions of a Helpful Bear
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Kristen Tracy, illus. by Erin Kraan. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-374-39118-8
Chaos ensues when an overzealous bear self-appoints as forest helper in Tracy and Kraan’s comic story. Clarifying that “I am friendly. I’ve been thoughtful my whole life,” the oblivious ursine protagonist works to help a fawn find its mother, to supply a yellow-bellied marmot some snacks, and to save what it perceives as a “stuck baby mountain goat,” among other gestures. Predictably, the figure’s self-judged friendliness proves terrifying to its recipients, resulting in varied degrees of helpfulness and humor. Spotting the marmot, Bear chases the frightened critter to a meadow with “much better grass,” and an attempt to assist a badger leaves the animal dripping in honey and swarmed by bees. When Bear beds down at day’s end, a final inviting act of kindness at last achieves only its sweet intentions. Fine lines provide a scratchy texture to the spreads and especially to Bear, whose cheerful disposition is echoed with sunny undertones. Ages 3–6. (May)
Feelings Are Wild
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Sophy Williams, illus. by Gavin Scott. Odd Dot, $18.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-2503-4323-9
A simple counting narrative notes how emotions can change over the course of a day in this sweetly rendered work. As the pages open, “One koala feels grumpy./ His nap time was too short” attends an illustration of a blanket-toting toddler kicking a Lego tower while a worried adult looks on. A page later, “Two bunnies feel nervous./ What if they get caught?” accompanies an image of two hungry culprits filching cookies. Feelings of restlessness, frustration, sadness, shame, shyness, worry, and fear follow before Williams reverses direction “to count back down/ and check in on our friends.” The bunnies now “feel relieved. They only got a warning,” and the koala is now “safe and warm,/ snuggled up and yawning.” Scott’s huggable animals are rendered in a soft watercolor style with bold background splatters. One group of animals—10 excited quokkas—curiously doesn’t appear in the countdown section, but the twining of intellectual and emotional layers successfully models more than one kind of learning. Ages 3–5. (May)
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