by Susan Milord
Scholastic, $15.99, 32 pages
No one will mind reading this book over and over. Kids will connect from the very first page because everyone there is already familiar whether reluctant, eager, or anxious. The illustrations are filled with images carefully placed, recognizable but never overcrowded: the dog pulling the blanket to wake the sleepy child, the treasured football beside the bed, shoes on the wrong foot. Young pre-readers will pore over the clothes their ‘peers’ choose for the momentous first day of school.
Picture books are half-and-half with text and illustrations complementing each other. This doesn’t actually happen often, but here it does. The brief text ensures everything is noticed but doesn’t waste a word. Adults who read the book will relish the mysterious identity of the bald, older-than-average Dad (or Granddad?) and his little boy who worries about the morning snack. Family or friends of the author or illustrator for sure!
I love this book and will go hunt for more children and schoolteachers in my circle who will undoubtedly enjoy it too.
Reviewed by Jane Manaster