Book Notes

How to Read a Book

Alexander, Kwame. How to Read a Book. HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2019.

How to Read a Book is written by Kwame Alexander and illustrated by Melissa Sweet. It is the winner of the 2020 Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award. It is a poem describing the juicy experience of how one can savor the reading experience. It is designed for children ages 2 – 8 years, but the words and images can be enjoyed by any age group.

The author and illustrator invite the reader to plant themselves on a tree or porch stoop and get comfortable. Then, peel open the book, noting the colors, “sunrise, sunrise,” and smell, “the scent of morning air and sweet butterfly kisses” within it. Dig into the words. Find the new world revealed by the book (“words + sounds in leaps + bounds.”) Take note of all the words and images and how they connect with each other. Touch the pages. Pull out all they have to say and absorb it. Savor it. Experience it. Reflect on it. “Your eyes need time to taste. Your soul needs room to bloom.”

Straight away, the book begins with a collage – before the title page. The poem’s stanzas are presented in a variety of font sizes with pops of bright oranges and pinks throughout. The illustrations are strategically arranged around the verses to complement them. Every page of this book includes a bright color or illustration. The reader will find a fun surprise in the middle. The book provides powerful imagery comparing the experience of reading a book to that of savoring a sweet clementine from the first peel to “squeeze every morsel of each plump line until the last drop of magic.” The poem is presented in a way that will trigger the readers’ imagination. The artist uses different techniques to move the readers through the poem via different lines and layouts.

How to Read a Book is an ideal poem to read aloud either to one child or small group. It takes the readers on a juicy book reading journey.

Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale

Steptoe, John. Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard, 1987.

Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale is written and illustrated by John Steptoe. It is the winner of the Coretta Scott King Award (1988) and a Caldecott Honor (1988). It is a story about the value of true kindness. It is designed for children in preschool through grade 3; however, it’s a romantic story with beautiful illustrations that can be enjoyed by anyone.

The story is set in an African village. There were two beautiful daughters, Nyasha who was kind and caring and Manyara who was ill-tempered and jealous, but hid these traits from some, such as her father. Nyasha set about her chores and gardening. She befriended all of the creatures in the garden, including Nyoka, a garden snake. One day, the king sent word he was looking to marry. Both the girls were to go with their father to meet the king. Manyara set out overnight to be the first one to meet the king and win his heart. She disregarded those she met along the way: the hungry boy, old woman, a man with his head under his arm, along with the nature she saw. Nyasha set out with the family in the morning. Unlike her sister, she cared for those she met en route and treated them with respect and kindness. She enjoyed the beautiful things she saw on her journey. When they arrived at the city, Manyara came running out warning her sister to stay away. The king is really a monster! Nyasha went in and found Nyoka. Nyoka turned into the King. He revealed he was the passersby and saw her true kindness. She was worthy of being his Queen.

There are 14 spreads in the story, each includes a picture of the gorgeous setting. What really caught my eye was the richness of the colors and details in the illustrations which show the African beauty and culture.

The story is a familiar, good versus evil folktale. The artist uses a realistic style to convey the characters and the setting in rich, tones with depth. The characters are shown with expressive faces. The reader can tell who the ill tempered one is and who the kind-hearted one is. The artwork also shows the reader beautiful settings including lush gardens, colorful birds and flowers, and people.

Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters is well suited for either one on one or small group story time where time can be spent reveling in the story’s detailed drawings. It takes the readers on a journey that demonstrates how kindness and goodness are valued.

Baby Monkey, Private Eye

Selznick, Brian and David Serlin. Baby Monkey, Private Eye. Scholastic Press, 2018.

Baby Monkey, Private Eye is written by Brian Selznick and David Serlin. It has earned multiple accolades: it is a Kirkus and Booklist starred review, 2019 Gryphon Award winner, and ALSC 2019 notable children’s book. Baby Monkey, Private Eye tells about the adventures of Baby Monkey solving mysteries. It is targeted for children in preschool through grade 1 (ages 4 – 8 years). This is appropriate because it includes simple sentences, large font, helpful images, and plenty of white space.

The first spread reads “WAIT!,” then introduces the character, Baby Monkey, as a private eye. There is a table of contents with the book sectioned into five chapters. It also includes a key, index, and bibliography. Chapter one is “The Case of the Missing Jewels.” A spread shows a picture of Baby Monkey reading a book on famous missing jewel cases. A woman dressed as an opera star bursts in claiming her jewels were stolen. Baby Monkey looks for clues, writes notes, eats snacks, and eventually, puts on pants. He follows the footprints and finds the zebra has taken the jewels! Chapter two is the “Case of the Missing Pizza.” Again, Baby Monkey looks for clues, writes notes, eats a snack, and eventually gets on his pants. He follows the footprints to find the lion has stolen the pizza! In Chapter 3, he follows the tracks and finds the snake has taken the clown’s nose. Chapter 4 has a bit of a twist. Baby Monkey is asked to find a spaceship. First he naps, then he gets on his pants and follows the footprints to the mouse with the missing spaceship. In the last chapter, a woman comes in looking for her baby. Baby Monkey doesn’t need clues, notes, snacks, or pants. It’s his mother!

A majority of the text in Baby Monkey, Private Eye are Dolch sight words for pre-kindergarten through 1st grade. The non-sight words include character names (e.g, Baby Monkey, Snake), single syllable (e.g., clue, notes, snack), and words with more than one syllable (e.g., private, stolen). The illustrations give meaning to the text. For example, Baby Monkey is shown using a pencil to scribble onto a sheet of paper with text, “Baby Monkey writes notes.” The pictures also highlight the found items in red, which stands out against the black and white sketches. The average number of words per sentence is 4 and ranges from 1 to 8. The sentences are simple. There is an ellipsis in the story which adds suspense.

The book is a fiction book. The book cover shows a black and white sketch of a little monkey with a magnifying glass about its size to give context. Of note, it is a thick easy reader with over 180 pages. Opening the book will reveal very large text and detailed drawings with a variety of mystery cases. The stories should excite many readers and the large, easy to read style coupled with detailed images should draw them into the book. The spreads depict action from Baby Monkey reading in his office, having a visitor who needs help, taking notes, putting on pants, and voila! The case is solved. This action pattern is repeated through the first three chapters. The authors then change it up for the last two chapters, which adds an element of interest and excitement. The illustrations are valuable in giving clues to the story. For example, on the spread when “Baby Monkey eats a snack,” the right side has an image of the monkey eating out of a baggie filled with snap peas, carrots, or apples saying, “Mmm…” They also add humor with several spreads showing Baby Monkey unsuccessfully trying to put on his pants.

Baby Monkey, Private Eye has 192 pages. The font size is about 36-point. Twice, the word WAIT! appears in a font large enough to take up a spread. The line length ranges from 1 – 4 words and averages 1.5 words. The font spacing between words and lines is about 36-point. There are generally 4 lines of text per page; it ranges from 1 – 5. There is a good amount of white space for the reader’s eyes to rest.

There is not an image on every page. Most frequently, the text is on the left and the image is on the right. There are spreads of images interspersed throughout the story (e.g., Baby Monkey taking a nap before looking for the spaceship). The art is realistically sketched and full of details. They are shown in black and white with occasional pops of color, specifically red.

Baby Monkey, Private Eye is an ideal summer reading list recommendation because children can take their time to read the words, explore the images, and use their bookmarks. At first, new readers may be intimidated by the size of the book, but it offers them the opportunity to read a book that looks like an adult book. This can be exciting and provide a sense of accomplishment when finished.

Pet Costume Party

Hooks, Gwendolyn. Pet Costume Party. Stone Arch Books, 2011.

Pet Costume Party is written by Gwendolyn Hooks and illustrated by Mike Byrne. It is a story about a boy and his pet goldfish hosting a Halloween costume party, but what will their costume be? It is targeted for beginning readers (grades 1 – 3). This seems appropriate. The basic story line includes mostly sight words and primarily simple sentences so children in pre-Kindergarten may also enjoy this book as they venture into the world of reading.

The first spread introduces readers to the Pet Club, which includes four best friends and their pets. Andy wants to have a Halloween costume party. Everyone is able to attend. What should Andy and his pet, Nibbles the fish, wear as a costume? Andy checks his closet and his craft box, but is unable to find anything. Lions? No. Spiders? No. Andy gets an idea and crafts all afternoon. The Pet Club arrives with each member and pet in a costume. What were Andy and Nibbles? Sharks!

A majority of the text in Pet Costume Party are Dolch sight words. Most of these words are leveled pre-kindergarten through 1st grade. The non-sight words include character names (e.g, Andy, Nibbles, Kayla, Daisy), single syllable (e.g., friends, craft), contractions (e.g., let’s, you’re), and words with more than one syllable (e.g., closet, bubbles). The book includes a list of “story words” at the end so the reader can review either before or after reading. The average number of words per sentence is 5 and ranged from 2 to 17. There are mostly simple sentences with a couple of complex sentences throughout the story. It also includes dialogue between Andy and Bubbles as they decide on a Halloween costume.

Pet Costume Party is a fiction book. The book cover shows the image of a boy and his fish in the boy’s room with costumes around them. The readers are immediately introduced to the 4 characters in the Pet Club and their pets. This leads to Andy deciding a costume party would be a fun way for all the friends to celebrate Halloween. But what costume should he and Bubbles wear? Most children will want to find out.

The spreads are action-oriented. The readers read about Andy and Bubbles thinking about a costume idea, getting one, and then deciding if it will work for both of them. The process is repeated three times. A lion? No. More thinking and worrying. A spider? No. Then the characters come up with an idea and are working on it, but the reader can’t see what it is until they come out for the the party. Surprise! They are both sharks. The illustrations are helpful in adding meaning to the text. For example, there is an image of a light bulb over Andy’s head when he gets his final idea.

Pet Costume Party has 31 pages. The font size is about 18-point. The line length averages 5 to 6 words and ranges from 1 to 8. The font spacing between words and lines is about 18-point. There are generally 3 lines of text per page. There is an image on every page, which is realistically drawn with a crisp, fun feel (e.g., Nibbles the pet goldfish has a bow on her head). They are outlined cleanly and colored with a watercolor look. Additional lines highlight features (e.g., rosy cheeks). The images add meaning to the text. There is a good amount of white space for the reader’s eyes to rest.

Pet Costume Party is a story about a child thinking creatively to solve a problem. Readers will probably like the inclusion of pets in the book. It would make a good story time book and can be followed by a craft project to decorate a paper plate as a costume mask.

Wild Animal Babies

Kratt, Martin and Chris Kratt. Wild Animal Babies. Random House, 2016.

Wild Animal Babies! is written and illustrated by Martin Kratt and Chris Kratt. It is a non-fiction book that introduces readers to baby animals in the wild and teaches them what they do. It is targeted for beginning readers (grades preschool through first grade). This seems appropriate, but the vocabulary includes numerous new terms and words with more than one syllable. In addition, the sentences average around 8 – 9 words so this book could be a good match for students beyond grade 1.

The story begins with Martin & Chris Kratt, the authors, introducing themselves and the topic “Creature Powers” of baby animals. Baby animals are cute. They also develop special powers such as eating, climbing, and swinging. The readers meet Stuffo the giant panda, Maze the zebra, a baby orangutan, Spotswat the cheetah, Cork the sea otter, Grabsy the spider monkey, Howler the wolf, and Clingon the ring-tailed lemur then learns about each animals’ special skill.

About half of the text in Wild Animal Babies! are Dolch sight words. A majority of the sight words are pre-kindergarten (K) or K. The non-sight words include character names (e..g, Chris, Martin, Stuffo), single syllable (e.g., love, wild), contractions (e.g., it’s let’s), and words with more than one syllable (e.g., swimmer, together). There are a few words with more than one syllable (e.g., follow, sparkle, rushes). The images are generally helpful. They depict each animal and the special power they are learning. There are an average of 8 words per sentence. There are a mix of simple, complex, and compound sentences. The story includes character quotes so readers get a sense they are with Chris and Martin. For example, in the section about Maze the zebra’s running skill, the text includes, “‘And here’s why!’ Chris shouts. ‘Hungry lions are coming! Let’s get out of here fast!’”

The book is a nonfiction book. The front cover is very colorful and shows two men, the Kratt brothers, with little animals around them. The first two pages introduce the brothers, the next two describe the book. Each spread includes action and highlights one baby animal. The readers see the animals eating, running, hanging, swimming, swinging, howling, and jumping. The text introduces the baby animal, highlights the animal’s skill, notes why it’s important or a fun quote from the brothers. The formula gives a sense of predictability to the reader but the bit of information is a nice surprise.

Wild Animal Babies! has 24 pages. The font size is about 20-point. The line length averages 4 words per line and ranges from 1 to 6. The font spacing between words and lines is about 20-point. There are generally 4 to 5 lines of text per page and it ranges from 2 to 6 lines. There is a good amount of white space mixed in with the text and images so the reader’s eyes can rest. The art is realistically drawn with a cartoon feel.

Wild Animal Babies! is an introduction to baby animals in the wild. It is a fun story about baby animals and what they learn to do and could supplement a science curriculum.

The Littlest Leaguer

Hoff, Syd. The Littlest Leaguer. Harper Collins, 2008.

The Littlest Leaguer is written and illustrated by Syd Hoff. It’s a story about a boy sticking with baseball despite his role as a bench warmer. He is rewarded by winning the series for his team by using his small size to his advantage. It is targeted for beginning readers (grades preschool through first grade); however, the long, complex sentences could extend it to readers beyond grade 1. The story is traditionally geared towards boys (e.g., boy on cover with blue background).

Harold is the smallest player on his little league team. His teammates, Shirley the Shortstop and Big Leon, negatively comment on his small size. This makes Harold try harder. He tries different positions, but ends up on the bench. He takes care of the baseball bats and fetches cold drinks for his teammates. His coach offers words of encouragement and Harold stays with his team, but continues to sit on the bench. The last game of the season is for the championship. Both teams are playing an amazing game. Harold roots for his team from the bench, wishing he could really help on the field. The team is down to its last batter. Unfortunately, he gets hurt and is unable to play. Harold has to pinch hit. The score is tied at 0. Knuckles Smith throws a fastball strike, followed by a curve ball strike. Harold’s teammates give up hope. Harold decides to use his small size to his advantage and crouches very low at the plate. Knuckles can’t find the strike zone. Ball 1. Ball 2. Ball 3. Full count. His teammates shout encouragement; his coach prays. Knuckles throws a slow ball and Harold hits it out of the park. His teammates carry him on their shoulders. He is a big leaguer.

About two-thirds of the text in The Littlest Leaguer are listed on Dolch sight words. Most of the sight words are leveled kindergarten (K) or pre-K. The images are helpful to the reader. For example, little league is clearly shown in the images as baseball. The text “Right across the plate” includes a picture of the baseball going over home plate on a baseball diamond. The average number of words per sentence was 12, which is long for a level 1 reader. There are several complex and compound sentences. For example, “Harold tried to make up for all this as a hitter, but there seemed to be no bat light enough for him and balls zoomed past him before he could swing” (p. 10).

The book is realistic fiction. The spreads reflect action, mostly on the baseball field. Readers can see that Harold is notably shorter than his teammates and is having a hard time fielding and hitting. The pages take the reader through Harold’s development as goes through the season. Harold has hope when he stands in rain and is disappointed when the rain fails to make him grow. It is a surprise that he decides to crouch down to trick the pitcher. The reader sees the look of excitement on Harold’s team and the disappointment on the losing team.

The Littlest Leaguer is 48 pages. The font size is at least 18-point. The line length ranges from 3 to 8 words per line. The font spacing between words and lines is at least 18-point. There are generally 5 lines of text per page and it ranges from 2 to 7. There is a good amount of white space for the reader’s eyes to rest along with text and images. The art reflects realistic drawings with a 1950’s cartoon feel. They are done in watercolor, are simple to interpret, and give meaning to the text. For example, an image of a baseball heading towards the reader is above the text describing the last pitch, the one that fooled batters, but Harold hit.

The Littlest Leaguer is a leveled reader in the “I Can Read!” series. It is level 1: beginning reading, but a new reader may have difficulty with the sentence structure. The sentences were long, although broken up into chunks, and complex (e.g., “’I’m tired of being so little,’ thought Harold, and he stayed out in the rain when a game stopped, hoping it would make him grow like the flowers.”)

The Littlest Leaguer works well for a child who is interested in baseball or may need to read an inspirational story. It is a motivational story that fosters stick-to-itiveness. It could be added to the summer reading list.

Ballet Dreams

Depken, Kristen. Ballet Dreams. Random House, 2013.

Ballet Dreams is written by Kristen L. Depken and illustrated by Ulkutay Design Group. It is a story about a girl who dreams of being a ballet star. It is targeted for beginning readers (grades PS – grade 1). This seems appropriate based on the simple sentence structure and use of sight words geared for that grade level. It is a story traditionally geared towards girls (e.g., girl on a pink cover).

Kristyn is a ballet dancer who dreams of being a star. During her dance, she rips her ballet shoes. Her friend, Hailey, goes with Kristyn to get new ones. When Kristyn puts on her new, shimmery shoes, she and Haily are transported to a magical world of ballet where Kristen is the star. An evil snow queen finds them and is angry that Kristyn and Hailey are in her world. They hide from the snow queen. Kristyn changes to a swan queen, meets a prince, and falls in love. A bad wizard wants the prince to marry his daughter, so he turns Kristyn and Hailey into swans. The wizard tricks the prince by making his daughter look like the swan queen. Kristyn and Haily fly to the palace and break the spell so the prince can see who Kristyn really is. The snow queen becomes angry and takes Hailey to the ice palace. Kristyn goes there and breaks the spell with her dancing. She saves Hailey! Kristyn takes off the shoes and the two girls go home. Kristyn dances her own steps at the big show. The audience loves her. She becomes a ballet star.

About two-thirds of the text in Ballet Dreams are on listed as Dolch sight words. Most of them are leveled as kindergarten (K) or pre-K. The non-sight words are character names or single syllable words (e.g., star). There are a few words with more than one syllable (e.g., follow, sparkle, rushes). The images are helpful, particularly showing the characters’ feelings. For example, Kristyn’s face changes from happy when she’s dancing to sad when she tears her shoe. The snow queen is depicted as angry, but forlorn when she is about to be melted. There are an average of 5-6 words per sentence. Most of the sentences are simple. Long sentences are occasionally interwoven with small ones. For example, three 4 word sentences are followed by a 10 word sentence on one spread.

Ballet Dreams is a fiction “Barbie” book. The cover shows a girl dressed in pink with sparkly shoes and a crown. The first few pages introduce the characters and set the stage. The text describes Kristyn as a dancer wishing to be a ballet star. The image shows her wistfully watching Tara, the ballet star, and her partner dancing. This should draw in a reader who was interested by the cover.

The illustrations provide clues to the story. For example, we see Kristyn’s outfit start to change and magic happening when she first puts on her new shoes and the girls are taken to a magic ballet world. Each spread includes action, mostly on ballet dancing; however, the readers also see the characters shopping, transported to new worlds, falling in love, and battling evil. The main character is developing the confidence to dance on her own. The inclusion of one evil character is somewhat expected; the second one is a bit of a surprise.

Ballet Dreams has 32 pages. The font size is about 20-point. The line length averages 3 words and ranges from 1 to 6 words per line. The font spacing between words and lines is about 20-point. There are generally 3 lines of text per page; it ranges from 2 to 8 lines. Images and text are balanced with white space for the reader’s eyes to rest. The art is realistically drawn and depicts traditional Barbie characters with a Disney feel.

Ballet Dreams is a good read for a child who is interested in dancing or Barbie and would make a good “free choice” reading selection. It is an easy to read story about a ballet dancer fulfilling her dreams of being a star dancer.

Fox the Tiger

Tabor, Corey R. Fox the Tiger. Balzer Bray, 2018.

Fox the Tiger is written and illustrated by Corey R. Tabor. He is the 2019 Geisel Award winner for this work. The story communicates a positive message that each individual is special. It is targeted for children in grades preschool through grade 1; however, it includes sight words through third grade so it could easily extend beyond that.

The story opens with Fox looking at a book about a tiger, wishing to be one. Tigers are big, fast, and sneaky. Fox paints on black stripes to look like a tiger. He sees his friend, Turtle, who says hello to Fox. Fox corrects Turtle; he is a tiger. Turtle decides to turn himself into a race car. Then, Rabbit turns himself into a robot. All three play prowling, growling, zipping, zooming, beep bop booping until it starts to rain. The rain washes away their costumes. At first, Fox is sad because he’s no longer a tiger. Then, a squirrel sees Fox and excitedly says, “Wow! A fox!” Squirrel thinks foxes are big, fast, and sneaky. Foxes are the best. This makes Fox smile and happy to be a fox.

A majority of the words in the story Fox the Tiger are on the Dolch sight word list. Most of the Dolch words are leveled for pre-kindergarten through first grade. The sentences range from 3 to 8 words. The story begins with Fox wishing to be a tiger. The next spread describes tigers in short sentences: big, fast, and sneaky with images of each. This draws the reader into the story. What will fox do about this?

The spreads in the book depict action for each of the characters: Fox, Turtle, and Rabbit. The reader reads Fox wishes to be a tiger, then paints stripes on himself to look like one. Each animal repeats the process of wanting to be something else, then changing into it. Even the waiting has action as depicted by the snail “moving” from left to right. It’s predictable the last character, Squirrel, would want to be something else, but the surprise is it wants to be a fox. The images help the reader understand the non-sight words and context of the story. For example, the images are realistically and colorfully drawn so the reader sees fox, tiger, turtle, rabbit, race car, robot, and squirrel. Actions words in the text are reflected the drawings (e.g., for prowl the reader sees an image of the character prowling). Abstract words are also drawn (e.g., light bulb over the character’s head for an idea).

Fox the Tiger is 32 pages. The font size is at least 18-point. The lines are generally 5 words long, ranging from 2 to 9 words per line. The spacing between the words and lines is at least 18-point font. There are generally 2 lines of text per page, ranging from 1 to 3. The pages are balanced with the illustrations and text and leave a good amount of white space for early readers. The images are realistic yet playful sketches of the characters and story.

Fox the Tiger is a good book for a child to read with an adult to make the transition from picture books to readers. There are plenty of pictures and sight words written in a simple format. It is a good story that positively reinforces that each individual is special.

Bear is Awake! An Alphabet Story

Harrison, Hannah E. Bear is Awake! An Alphabet Story. New York, Dial Books for Young Readers, 2019.

Bear is Awake! An Alphabet Story was written and illustrated by Hannah Harrison. It is a 2019 Kirkus star review recipient. It is an alphabet book targeted for children between age 3 and 7 years, although this story may work best for children aged 2-5 years. Children younger than 3 would also like this story.

Bear is Awake! begins with a hibernating bear waking up early (i.e., Aa – Awake). The Bear wanders to a Cabin and meets a Girl. From there, the girl and the bear go on an adventure traveling through the town (e.g, park, library, store), and the alphabet, until the girl tucks the bear back to sleep (i.e., Zz – zzzzzz). The author supplements the images with descriptive words using the same letters (e.g., ding-dong, jeepers!) The author incorporates all of the letters, including the X, to tell the story. She does such a good job, it’s easy to forget this is an alphabet book. Each letter is highlighted in both upper and lower case.

The artwork plays a significant role in telling the story. The story is told over 16 spreads. The author shows who the characters are; how the characters are feeling; and what they are doing. This makes it feel more of a story than an alphabet book.

There is a sketch of a town at the onset. The illustrations are very realistic. The readers will see beautifully detailed characters such as the bear and girl. They will see grumpy faces and nervous librarians. The images take the reader into town. They move the reader from laughingly making pancakes to quiet sadness because the girl knows the bear has to go back. The back pages show the same sketch of the town but shows the path from the girl’s house to the bear’s hibernation space.

Bear is Awake! An Alphabet Story is an illustrated alphabet story about a bear who wakes up too early from his winter nap and goes on adventures with new friend. This is an excellent story time book over the winter.

I Walk With Vanessa

Kerascoët. I Walk With Vanessa. New York, Schwartz & Wade Books, 2018.

I Walk With Vanessa is a story created by Kerascoët. It is a 2019 Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) Notable Book recipient. It is designed for children ages 4 to 8, but really could be read to children who are younger than 4 years of age. It could also be worked into curriculum for children who are older than 8 years. The lack of text can foster interesting and open dialog.

The readers meet Vanessa; she is new to the school. She is uninvolved in the classroom, at gym, or in the school yard. On her walk home, a young boy stops her and says things that clearly upset her. Another girl sees this and the impact it has on Vanessa. She watches Vanessa run into her home. She tells her friends what happened. They all walk away looking despondent. The girl is pondering what to do throughout the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. The next morning, she gets an idea. She stops by Vanessa’s house on her way to school. She takes her hand and the two walk together. Children join them along the way. By the time they arrive at the school, the readers see dozens and dozens walking with Vanessa. In the end, Vanessa is shown in the classroom engaged.

The print book is tall and wide which makes the images pop in the white space. The story is told over 17 spreads. At the end of the story, the creators include notes for children on how to help someone who is being bullied and adults with useful words and definitions when talking about this book with children. Additional activities related to the book are available online.

I Walk With Vanessa is a wordless story told by the ink and watercolor images. The illustrations are realistic depicting small children in school, in neighborhood, and at home. The book opens to a sea of dots in varying shades of gray. The layout varies; the creators use multiple snapshots to full spreads. They also use the images to control the pace. More specifically, there are three horizontal images, one below the other, used to show the effect the bully had on Vanessa. This draws the reader to look at the emotions shown on Vanessa’s face and the girl mirroring those emotions in response. The creators beautifully depict feelings and emotions through the images. It is evident when the characters feel left out, angry, or hurt, when they are unsure, and when they feel accepted and happy.

The use of color is very powerful. An instance of bullying is shown over a red background. After the bullying, the images are shown in backgrounds in varying shades of gray/blue. This continues until the girl has an idea of how to help, then we see pink, yellow, and green appear throughout the neighborhood. The end pages mirror the sea of dots at the beginning but are in varying, bright colors.

I Walk With Vanessa is a beautifully illustrated story about how one act of kindness response can have a big impact. This could be used as curriculum support during either Kindness Week or around Random Acts of Kindness Day (2/17).