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Reviewed by: Taylor Coonelly, Elementary School Librarian Title: Stacey's Remarkable Books
Author: Stacey Abrams Illustrator: Kitt Thomas Publisher: Balzer and Bray
Year: 2022 Good for Grades: PK-4 Genre/Type of Book: Picture Book
Content Warnings, or things that other School Librarians should be aware of: N/A Recommended for a school library: Yes Reason(s) for choosing the book: I love Stacey Abram's first book and the illustration style of this illustrator
If you were tasked by the publisher with writing a short quote for the back cover of this book, what would it be:
From American politician and civil rights activist Stacey Abrams comes another childhood tale about the life-changing power of books.
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Review:
Even during recess, Stacey can't be pulled away from her books. Especially on Thursdays, which is when her whole class adventures to the library to check out new books. One Thursday, she meets new friend in her class, Julie, who tells Stacey that she struggles with reading in English because her family speaks Vietnamese at home. Stacey and Julie make their way to the library that afternoon, to pick out all of Stacey's favorites to teach Julie how to read. They pour through the library's shelves every Thursday after that, and one day Julie invites a new friend named Haddy to join them. The girls continue to add new readers and languages to their club, sharing different languages and cultures and creating diverse friendships.
The illustrations in this book (and the other book written by Stacey Abrams) are some of my favorite children's book illustrations that I have seen. They are colorful and fun, and feature a variety of different diverse characters. I think the cover absolutely draws people in when it is on the shelf, and the story hooks them. I love that these stories are from the author's real life, and that the author is someone influential who readers may know/could learn about. This story is fun and sweet, and touches on how reading and books can bring everyone together no matter who they are and create mirrors, windows and sliding glass doors for others. This book is an incredible model for students on being tolerant, empathetic and inclusive to their peers, and could even teach a thing or two to all people (not just kids).
I highly recommend this book for a read-aloud all year, possibly even in a library setting because one of the settings of the story is the library.
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For more information about this book, see the Publisher's Website
For activities and resources about this book check out TeachingBooks.net