Author: Margaret Kingsbury

I adore all of the Amy Wu picture books by Zhang and Chua, and both this most recent book in the series and Amy Wu and the Patchwork Dragon have school-related themes. In Warm Welcome, a new student at school has Amy confused. No matter how much she talks to him, he doesn’t respond. When she hears him greet his little sister in Chinese, she realizes he wasn’t rejecting her, he just didn’t understand her! Amy decides to throw a community dumpling party and welcome him properly this time — by making a welcome sign using Chinese characters. But now it’s her turn to feel a little shy about an unfamiliar language.

This picture book has a similar theme to Amy Wu and the Warm Welcome but a different approach, and it takes place in a preschool instead. All of the students in Luli’s preschool speak different languages. On the first day of school, they play separately instead of together, the lack of a common language creating a barrier between students. But Luli has an idea to bring everyone together — tea! The next day Luli brings tea and cookies to the classroom, and they all have a tea party. The tea party helps break the ice, and, afterward, everyone plays together in groups. I am writing this as I drink green tea, so I am fully behind the idea of tea parties = friendship.

This autobiographical picture book tells the story of Vanessa’s first day of school. Vanessa wants to show how special she is by dressing uniquely for school. Unfortunately, her unique outfit is not a hit with the other kids at school, and they won’t play with her. She begins copying them, hoping that doing so will help them like her, but that doesn’t work either. After some parental love and insight into her name, she realizes she can still be Vanessa. When she returns to school this time with confidence in herself, she feels more comfortable and is able to make friends.

This follow-up to The King of Kindergarten follows a young Black girl on her first day of school. She could not be more excited, and when she decides to wear a tiara on the first day, her mother reminds her of what queens of kindergarten do: they brighten up the room, they’re kind and caring, and they’re helpful. By practicing these skills on her first day of kindergarten, the little girl helps make her classroom community better for everyone.

This picture book addresses childhood depression. Coen is depressed, and doesn’t feel like leaving his bed. One by one, his father, mother, and little sister try to coax him from the bed, but none of their approaches works. All Coen wants to do is huddle under the covers and feel his emotions. When his family gives him the space, quiet, and support to do just that, his blue feelings slowly dissapate, and he’s able to climb out of bed and start his day.

Based on the author’s experiences with anxiety, this picture book chronicles how a girl and her dog deal with day-to-day anxieties. Even though it’s the weekend, the child narrator and her dog have a lot of worries. But with some deep breaths and imagination, plus the bravery and kindness found in one another’s company, the two are able to go outside and play, despite their initial fears.

Sometimes the dad in this picture book is happy and full of energy, like the sun. But sometimes he’s deeply sad, lost in the blue, or even an angry red. This makes the child narrator feel sad and angry too. Both father and daughter go to therapy, and the dad is able to find his sunshine again, though the blue does still come back sometimes. This is a picture book I needed as a child. It’s a lovely color-based metaphor, and a must for children having a similar experience with a loved one. The author bases it on her own experiences.

I adore this middle grade graphic novel about Chinese-American middle-schooler Livy. Livy’s anxiety is so pervasive it forms into an alter-ego—Viola. Viola follows Livy to a new school, and makes it difficult for her to make new friends and participate in school. In the end, she does tell her parents and she begins to go to therapy, which helps her manage Viola and her anxiety. I love the growing trend of showing kids in therapy.

This playful picture book is in direct contrast to Just Ask!. Joe wants to play pirates at the playground, but instead of playing with him, kids keep asking him what happened to his leg, and they won’t stop asking. When they finally do decide to play with him, they all have fun. It turns out it doesn’t really matter why Joe has one leg. What really matters is how much fun it is to be friends. Author James Catchpole, who is also a leg amputee, provides a helpful guide to caregivers in the back about how to respond when their curious children do ask disabled folk, “What happened?”

Disabled author and educator Kristine Napper provides an excellent conversation starter in this intriguingly formatted children’s book. Instead of traditional illustrations, the book uses neat typography and graphic design. The text is an extremely informative and straightforward guide to disability, from basic facts like how many people are disabled, to how to talk to disabled people, to ableism and discrimination disabled folk experience. Napper writes very personally and it feels like a conversation.

This nonfiction picture book chronicles the Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia 1971 case, where the court ruled that schools had to allow and provide accommodations for disabled students. It’s a landmark case in disability history, and the child-friendly illustrations and accessible text make it a great introduction to some of the discrimination disabled people have experienced. It shows how disabled kids can make things change.

This illustrated anthology of biographies about 34 major disabled historical figures is a must for upper elementary and middle school students. The mini bios examine an array of people and their disabilities, from Frida Kahlo to Peter Dinklage to Arunima Sinha. The contemporary illustrations are lovely.

This joyful picture book celebrates disabled bodies as they move through a variety of spaces. The vibrant illustrations are accompanied by lyrical, simple prose that shows all types of disabled bodies moving fast, slow, waiting in line, playing, and marching for disability justice. It’s a powerful, lovely read and a call to action for more accessible spaces.

This picture book doesn’t release until August 23rd, but it’s definitely worth pre-ordering! Written by #DisabledAndCute founder Keah Brown, it tells the story of a little girl with cerebral palsy finding the perfect back-to-school outfit, and finding the perfect place to rest. When I interviewed Keah Brown for a piece I’m writing for School Library Journal, she told me how her impetus for writing this was the lack of disabled Black joy in her childhood reading (and not much has changed since).

All four books in Samantha Cotterill’s Little Senses series center a joyful experience for a child on the autism spectrum. In this one, two children play trains together, but when one child has trouble relegating and reading emotions, it could ruin playtime. With a bit of coaching from his mom, what could’ve been a disaster turns into lots of fun.

I’m a musical fiend and I cannot say enough good things about this delightful middle grade by disabled Broadway star Ali Stroker! 14-year-old Nat Beacon has moved, and while her dad wants her to join the wheelchair racing team, Nat wants to do something of her own, like theater. When she tries out for Wicked, she lands a part, but a fire might shut down the play. Stroker also has a new picture book that recently released, Ali and the Sea of Stars, which also centers disabled joy.

This interactive picture book is a lot of fun to read to kids. Doug is a happy kid who doesn’t like hugs. And that’s fine! Some people do, and some people don’t. How do you know the difference? You ask. I love this book’s emphasis on asking and how it demonstrates how to ask and various ways to respond.

Rissy the lovebird does not like kisses, but all lovebirds like kisses, right? Rissy worries there might be something wrong with her, but with her mother’s support, she realizes she is perfectly valid not to enjoy kisses and can show her love in other ways. This rhyming picture book flows really well and gets requested quite a bit at my house!

This board book is an excellent one to have on hand in preschool and daycare settings, and also for starting conversations with caregivers and young children. In clear language and dialogue, this book shows what consent means, how to ask for consent, and how to respond when asked for consent. It has advice for caregivers in the back.

While this picture book doesn’t discuss consent, it’s my favorite body-positive children’s book. Children need to love and embrace their bodies to be able to have the confidence to stand up for their bodies, and this rhythmic picture book will have kids singing about how their bodies are cool. I love the diversity of bodies represented. It’s a joyful, beautiful book.

This picture book is an absolute blast to read with kids. Like The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish (which is also an absolute delight), children can sing along to the popular song with drag queen variations on the actions. So instead of clapping hands, kids can blow kisses, and instead of stomping feet, kids can shake their bums, my 4-year-old’s favorite.

This picture book is hilarious, about a gay couple with 456 chickens. That’s right, 456. Mr. Watson loves the chickens, but Mr. Nelson has had enough with the feathered chaos. They decide to take the chickens to the market to sell, where one chicken in particular uses her powerful voice to find a unique new home for all the chickens. However, the couple soon misses their chickens, but thankfully a surprise awaits them at home. This book gets big belly laughs from my daughter!

This super sweet bedtime book features two moms trying to gently get their imaginative child back in bed. But this child is a master of stalling. On each page spread, the child compares their bed to the bed of an animal. It’s a playful, sweet book that I’m sure many parents and children will relate to.

Trinity, who is Black, transgender, and autistic, longs for hair that better represents her identity. With the help of her mother and brother, Trinity’s rainbow hair dreams come true. I love how supportive the family in this is.

This picture book is hilarious. Two dads desperately try to organize their children for a cleaning session before grandma comes by listing everything that needs to be done on the refrigerator using magnetic letters. Upon hearing that a bath is in order, the cat not so helpfully rearranges all the letters leading to hilarious consequences. My daughter requests this picture book so much, and I love that it has two gay dads without it being “about” having two dads.

Every morning, my daughter and husband go to a nearby park and find lots of fun things to explore in nature, which is one reason why I love this picture book. I also love how the dad lets his daughter explore some by herself, though, as the vibrant illustrations show, he’s keeping a close eye on her even if she doesn’t realize it! This book is really lovely, from the lyrical prose to the gorgeous illustrations.

If you have a kid that will be learning how to ride a bike soon, this is a must! In rhythmic prose, a dad teaches his daughter how to ride a bike. There are falls, but the girl gets back up and keeps trying. One of our local librarians recently gave us a bike her stepdaughter had outgrown, so we’re definitely going to be reading this a lot in the future!

This beautiful picture book is a lyrical ode to cities and all their hidden beauty. A visually impaired girl and her father spend a day exploring their city. They go to a playground, a community garden, and an outdoor concert where the little girl plays the violin. It’s clear these are places the two go to often. I love the incidental disability representation in this one.

This lovely free verse poem depicts the history of Juneteenth from its origins in Galveston, TX in 1865 to the present. It shows the ways Black people who were enslaved reacted to the news that they were free and follows those reactions and celebrations into the present. Bostic’s warm oil painting illustrations are stunning. The entire book is a work of art.

This nonfiction title is a bit denser than the other two and would make an excellent book to teach about Juneteenth in elementary schools. It provides a nuanced overview of Juneteenth’s history from its origins to the present day. I especially appreciated how it didn’t romanticize Abraham Lincoln.

This picture book takes place in the present. While Mazie prepares for her family’s Juneteenth celebration, her father tells her about the history of Juneteenth. It’s an accessible read for young children, with gorgeous illustrations.

This lyrical picture book is told from the perspective of a child who has been enslaved and who hopes for a better future. When she and her family find out they are free, they celebrate. It’s a joyful book with beautiful, painted illustrations.

When publishers send me books for review consideration, they sometimes package them with these crinkled paper strips. Whenever I receive a box like that, I think the publicist must not have children because all those crinkles immediately become wildly strewn about the house. And on my head. Weeks later, I will still be finding them. I do look surprisingly good with blue in my hair, though, so I am now thinking about adding blue highlights.

I hope all the American followers have a lovely Juneteenth and Father’s Day this Sunday! If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, Twitter @AReaderlyMom, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com

Until next Tuesday!

Margaret Kingsbury