The Story of a Book

June 1, 2023
A book makes its way to different readers. In a paean to literature, reading, and choice, a purple book with a yellow star ends up in the hands of different readers. The first person who picks it up in a library when it's still "fresh ink on crisp pages" "is not the reader for this book," but the story--depicted with stars and bright squiggles and butterflies flying out from between the covers--finds its way into more appreciative hands. "More powerful when you choose the book yourself," for some reason, the untitled book ends up in a hospital bed, a treehouse, and a baby's arms. Very little happens throughout--a few lines per page follow the book and the readers through endlessly supportive atmospheres, and when the book comes full circle, battered and worn in a library book sale, it finds new life as a kite flying high in the sky. This feels like a poem for adults who are starry-eyed about the power of reading, but actual children who enjoy stories may feel like something is lacking in this book about books. Colorful, detailed illustrations show a diverse cast engaging with the book in school, at home, and around nature. (This book was reviewed digitally.) An idea self-conscious about its own importance. (Picture book. 4-7)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

August 1, 2023
Grades 1-3 After opening with a bird's-eye view of people reading all around a pleasant park, the perspective immediately moves inside a library. A new book has just been placed on display. Who will check it out? Who will become its first reader? This timely story for book lovers of all ages captures the spirit of connection between book and reader. The narrative gently suggests that not all books are for all readers and acknowledges the power in choosing a book for oneself. People at different ages or in different circumstances need books for different things at different times. Graceful illustrations project an atmosphere of positivity. Books are being celebrated, not removed. People of various skin tones, hair colors, and ages are portrayed, and several children make use of adaptive devices. After the book has been read and well loved, it appears to be reaching the end of its useful life. Even so, the final images reveal that it is being repurposed into visual artwork, and the power of the book lives on.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 11, 2023
Loosely tracing the circulation cycle of a library checkout, McCullough sings the praises of books and the magic they make with their “perfect reader” in this inviting tribute. While a brand-new pink tome is initially passed up by a patron, the volume is soon enjoyed by kids in a community depicted with various abilities and skin tones, including a child in a hospital bed and two children at a swimming hole. As time passes, “so many readers/ love the book/ or chew on it/ spill on it/ sleep on it/ cry on it” that it heads, tattered, to a library book sale, and becomes fodder for creativity. Vibrantly saturated colors infuse Holzwarth’s curvaceous artwork, which traces whimsical doodles emanating from the treasured object. Ages 4–8.

August 25, 2023

Gr 1-3-A brand new library book, with "fresh ink on crisp pages," makes its way from reader to reader, working its magic along the way. Settings meander from a library to a hospital room to a tree house, where the children reading the book find that the magic can "transport you to a brighter place," is "sweeter when you share it," and is "more powerful when you choose it [the book] yourself." Every librarian will recognize the tattered, much-loved book, (though not many will see themselves hand stamping the book with a due date, as the librarian in this story does). The original book eventually ends up at the library book sale, where a father and child pick it up to repurpose it into art, thus completing the cycle. The message is clear-when a book finds its reader, magic can happen. Children will find much to engage them in the gorgeous gouache and colored pencil illustrations, with dreamy pink and orange trees, yellow houses, and floaty spirals and swirly symbols flowing out of the book indicating the "magic." The cast of characters is a lively mix of ethnic backgrounds. Background images include one child with a walker, and another using a wheelchair. VERDICT Despite the rich visuals and the lovely message, however, the text lacks a clear narrative structure and somehow doesn't quite come together as a coherent whole.-Sue Morgan

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2023
Warm mixed-media illustrations depict the journey of a single book as it passes from person to person over time, connecting -- imperceptibly or overtly, but always powerfully -- readers diverse in age, race, and ability to each other. Although as a physical object, the book suffers wear and tear as it travels through the world, the book is itself a world whose mysterious, often unexpected magic endures long beyond the final page. Particularly satisfying is the illustrations' acknowledgment of all the places where a book can be read, from a treehouse, to a darkened bedroom at night, to the shore of a lake, to a classroom, and more. The concise text notes the many ways reading can empower, support, and serve us. A heartfelt celebration of the practical, social, intellectual, and emotional uses of books.

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)