Picture Books

 This week, we're also looking at Picture Books. Here are four more assessments and recommendations.

Knockl Knock: My Dad's Dream for Me

Knock Knock is the powerful story told from the child's perspective of the loss of a loving father. Throughout the book, colors are muted and dark, echoing the heartbreak of the young boy. The illustrations have texture to add to the realism, such as the wrinkles in the father's shirt. Two primary illustrated metaphors move through the book - a paper airplane representing the child's reaching for this father through a letter and the father's hat, representing his presence and the memory of him. As the boy receives a letter from his father, he slowly grows into his own hat and life, following the words and advice of the letter. With 60-70% of African-American/Black families being single parent households, this book takes on some of the difficult emotions faced by the child in these situations.

The Knock Knock childhood "I love you" game becomes encouragement to grow and define a new life "knocking down the doors that [the father] could not." The illustrations and text work well together and guide the readers through this very sad, but needed representation of a large part of many children's lives.

Beaty, Daniel, and Bryan Collier. 2013. Knock Knock: My Dad’s Dream for Me. First Edition. New York ; Boston: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

We are the Water Protectors

With rich color, We are Water Protectors brings the read into the book, rolling with the waves and the current of the river. In this book, a black snake threatens the land's precious water and becomes an entity against which the human community must bond together to protest. While not stating overtly, the references to the Keystone Oil Pipeline and the devestating effects of a spill on the environment are clear. The representations of the tribes and their beliefs in their role to protect the water are modern depictions. The illustrations demonstrate the integration and important of water into the lives of the people and the relationship in the ecosystem.

With bold, capital letters to emphasize the pride and the need for action, the smaller words describe why the action is important in vocabulary that children can easily understand. The black snake is a strongly visual threat to the bright colors and life in the rest of the book. As the winner of the 2020 Caldecott, We are Water Protectors brings children into the current conversations of conservation, culture, and key future decision making.

Lindstrom, Carole. 2020. We Are Water Protectors. Illustrated edition. Roaring Brook Press.

Alma and How She Got her Name

As names become more and more varied and expanded, a book about how and why children's names are chose and why is a welcoming addition to children's literature. Alma, a girl wearing  bright red stripes in a world of muted colors, asks about the origin of her name and why it is so long. Each page tells of part of her name and her family history. Her past is represented in monochrome but as each story is told, Alma leans into the past and engages with that aspect of her name, bringing her color and life into the past and building relationships with her history.

By the end of the book, Alma understands the history of her name and how aspects of her personality come from her history. The text is brief and clear, easy to understand for a younger audience. Alma's names represent a rich culture and pride in family history.

Martinez-Neal, Juana. 2018. Alma and How She Got Her Name. Candlewick Press.

Big Red Lollipop

In Big Red Lollipop,  the challenge of being an older sibling is on display and one that anyone with siblings, children with siblings, or those who know anyone with siblings is able to see. Rubina's so excited about being invited to a birthday party that she runs home from school, only to have her younger sister insist on being invited as well. The illustrations match the text, showing the dominance of the mother and younger temper tantrum sister over Rubina.

Later, even the background colors of the pages show the anger Rubina feels as her sister throws fits and has to win in front of all Rubina's friends. Static images strongly demonstrate the action and emotion of each page, as Rubina seeks to fit in with her friends. Worse still, her sister, who wasn't invited to the party, steals the big red lollipop that was given as a thank you gift. While displaying non-white cultural depictions, the story displays common sibling themes. Children can take this book as a guide, as Rabina faces the difficult decision of revenge versus changing how her family is to operate in the world. This book highlights some of the pressures faced by the 1.5 and second generation of immigrant in straddling two cultures but also offers no solutions other than finding a way to find into the dominant culture. While a strong book for siblings already needing to learn how to share and compromise, it could be a be viewed as a book valuing dominent white culture over personal traditions in order to fit in.

Khan, Rukhsana. 2010. Big Red Lollipop. Illustrated edition. New York: Viking Books for Young Readers.