(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. On her first day as a rental bicycle for Beep Beep Bicycles, Bike worries she might not be able to live up to riders' expectations. An older, more seasoned bike advises, "You'll be okay...Really, you will." A page-turn gives some basic information on how the rentals work: e.g., "When you're done, you leave it on another rack, somewhere else in the city." Bike takes a variety of people on six rides through Seattle (evident from the Space Needle and other landmarks). Some riders are chatty, one is in a hurry, a few are going to or coming from work, another is a tourist. Bike rides into neighborhoods, past parks, to the aquarium, and more. We feel the exhilaration as she zips along -- "Zoom! Bike loves going downhill" -- and also the hardships. Going up a steep hill, an older rider "gets off Bike and pushes her to the top...It's so embarrassing to be pushed." Karas, using pencil on paper warmly colored in Adobe Photoshop, creates cityscapes that are beautifully detailed and full of activity. Bike is drawn as a cartoon character, at once endearing and comical. Jenkins's lively, engaging text presents a heartfelt story, gives an informative tour of Seattle, and provides excellent reasons for city bike rentals. An afterword offers bike safety tips.

Reviewer: | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2024

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. When a rosy-cheeked "small-footed human" visits the park, he spies a gaggle of friends showing off their playground skills--they are sports stars, reading machines, and even adept backwards-counters. Small-footed human, however, is more...0human. Running to keep up with the pack, he trips over his shoelaces, forgets how to re-tie them, and totally loses his cool. His verbal frustrations summon an unlikely support team to his side: a Yeti and his close relations Sasquatch, Bigfoot, and the Abominable Snow Monster, all ready to help the protagonist back onto his feet with some friendly growth-mindset wisdom. With loosely drawn limbs and toothy grins, the fuzzy quartet bounds around the park demonstrating the punnily identified "Power of Yeti"--as in, when asked to high-five a Sasquatch, remind yourself that you're "not tall enough...YETi!" The ambling cryptids assure their small-footed friend that their own skills--in everything from basketball to ballet—developed with time, practice, and persistence. Van Slyke's bubbly narrative and Karas's ever-smiling figures paint the acquisition of social-emotional skills in a perhaps-too-rosy glow, but the straightforward presentation makes for a practicable introduction that will make even the biggest and hairiest challenges seem more approachable.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. A thoughtful school librarian ­connects a child with a life-changing book in this installment in the Mr. Tiffin's Classroom series (How Many Seeds in a ­Pumpkin?, rev. 7/07, et al.). Librarian Beck notices that Jake is more interested in the bookcases and shelving than in the library ­collection, so they encourage Jake to check out Woodworking for Young Hands. Jake struggles with the instructions, but he renews the hefty volume week after week. Jake considers how additional objects in his environment are ­constructed and begins borrowing even more books on how to make things. When he realizes that the school library will be closed all summer, he builds and installs (with Gramps's help) a "little library" outside of the school so kids can continue to read and share books. In July, Jake receives a surprise package in the mail: Librarian Beck has marked Woodworking for Young Hands "withdrawn" and sent the discarded library book to Jake as a gift. Substantial dialogue immerses readers in the day-to-day life of the protagonist; adults offer help and guidance, but Jake accomplishes much on his own. Spot art and spreads in the illustrator's recognizable paint and pencil style (recently Almost Time, rev. 1/20, and The Village Blacksmith, rev. 9/20) further develop character and setting, allowing clothing expression, home decor, and references to real-world library books to provide texture. An appended note "by" Jake offers more information about Little Free Libraries.

Reviewer: Elisa Gall | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2021

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. If you remember this poem, you probably remember it as "Under the spreading chestnut tree," and indeed a chestnut it is. But an agreeable one, as here partnered with modest pencil-and-crayon illustrations by Karas, expanding (barely) upon Longfellow's words and placing the poem (gently) in our own time. We see a young ponytailed blacksmith--hardly the brawny-armed hero of the text, but looking sturdy enough--as he and his truck pick up scrap metal at the junkyard and take it back to his shop 'neath that legendary tree. Alongside Longfellow's "children coming home from school," we watch him forge, the fierce coal fire dramatically shooting orange-yellow sparks onto a palette of mainly subdued tones of gray, brown, and green. While there's a small visual through line about the smith fixing a fence for a neighbor, Karas does not attempt to impose a new story upon the poem and respects its saddest moment, when the blacksmith remembers his late wife, showing us the man with his children in church, gazing out the window at the graveyard. It's all in the poem. At one time "The Village Blacksmith" was a standard recitation piece among schoolchildren; try it out for storytime and see if Longfellow's sonorous, rolling verse can win today’s kids over. (I bet yes.)

Reviewer: Roger Sutton | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2020

(2) PS Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Waiting for spring can wear on one's patience, but readers may find comfort sharing the burden with Ethan and his (apparently single-parent) father, who go through their daily routines looking forward to warmer days, shorter nights, and running sap in their maple trees. Still, Ethan has quite a wait yet, and as time passes, the illustrations show the stark contrasts of dark skies and long shadows with indoor lights and white snow. And, week after week, Ethan faces Sunday breakfast sans maple syrup, while the nights remain long and the days cold. A loose tooth provides a break in the monotony but ultimately creates yet another thing to wait for. Through muted colors with pops of red and well-considered details, artfully placed illustrations ranging from spot art to double-page spreads capture the relentlessness of winter, the budding of spring, and the easy comfort of this father-and-son relationship. Crisp text supplies just the right pace for the story and clearly explains the sugaring process without disrupting the flow of the narrative. The subtle visual cues that the season is slowly changing become more evident with every page-turn until the sweet and satisfying conclusion.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2020

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. On Friday nights, a young boy accompanies his father to his job cleaning a school. While the book quietly highlights their loving bond, it is loud in its admirable message that not everyone's job or home life is the same. The poetic text combines with the mixed-media illustrations' inspired use of light throughout to create a dreamy atmosphere.

Reviewer: Kari Allen

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. On a school trip to the natural history museum, Kimmy, who loves science and dinosaurs, is silenced when her male classmate scoffs, "Girls aren't scientists." With support from teacher Mr. Tiffin and plenty of inspiring evidence to the contrary, Kimmy finds her voice. In Karas's friendly gouache and pencil illustrations, the class wanders grand halls and awe-inspiring fossil displays as the drama unfolds.

Reviewer: Danielle J. Ford

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Root's upbeat rhyming text details all the places to grow things. Then it suggests what one might plant and who might come to visit one's "anywhere farm." Karas's mixed-media illustrations first focus on one little girl with a single plant but eventually include a whole diverse neighborhood transforming a barren urban space into a lush, flourishing garden. Inspiring and empowering; friendly and inviting.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2017

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Elderly Mrs. Goldman loves making hats for the keppies (heads) of babies in their neighborhood; her young next-door neighbor Sophia embellishes each hat with pom-poms. It's their mitzvah, or "good deed." One cold, windy day, Sophia wonders where Mrs. Goldman's own hat is, so she knits one for her friend. Karas's precise, unfussy mixed-media illustrations in muted hues enhance Edwards's ode to intergenerational friendship.

Reviewer: Robin L. Smith | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2016

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Joey is entranced when Mrs. Takimoto demonstrates origami to his class and begins practicing on everything he can find ("'This folding has to stop,' said Mom"). Despondent, Joey goes to his favorite restaurant, Muy Mexicana, and discovers folding cloth napkins. Gentle humor keeps the story from being preachy; Karas's gouache and pencil illustrations show a cheery multicultural neighborhood. Origami instructions appended.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2016

(4) PS Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Animals flock to flamingo Miss Bingo's storytime, where amid all the reading, rapping, and rhyming fun, a child-size crisis arises: "Oh no! Someone tramples on Annabelle's toe!" In a nod toward child empowerment, young fox Rory saves storytime from grinding to a halt. Sierra's ABCB rhymes are recognizable if not memorable. Clever composition in Karas's colored-pencil drawings capture the drama.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. A young African American girl narrates New England whaling history by contrasting the mission and quality of life for whalers of times past with a trip aboard her father's whale-watching ship. Karas's detailed illustrations inform flashback scenes with sepia tones while maintaining visual connections to the present day. An intriguing first introduction to whaling, with an informative author's note. Reading list, websites. Glos.

Reviewer: Pam Yosca

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Mr. Tiffin's students (How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?) are preparing for a famous poet's visit. Initially confident in her own abilities, Elinor grows worried when her poetry knowledge doesn't translate into being able to write poetry herself. The kids' poetry may inspire young readers to attempt their own, especially since the diverse group of classmates look like they're having fun in Karas's gouache, acrylic, and pencil pictures.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: January, 2015

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Applegate introduces picture-book readers to the true story that inspired her Newbery-winning The One and Only Ivan. In poetic prose she describes gorilla Ivan's early life in Africa; his dramatic capture; his time on display in a shopping mall; and his transition to the Atlanta Zoo. Karas's mixed-media illustrations--in his warm and unaffected style--are at once straightforward and provocative.

Reviewer: Nina Lindsay | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2014

(2) PS Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Bluemle uses rhymes and rhythms to convey sudden changes in weather: "Sky grumbles. / Rain tumbles..." Collage illustrations show city-dwellers of all ethnicities, ages, and sizes hustling down to the subway to wait out the storm. Karas's pictures combine painting, drawing, and photographs to show the grit, energy, and beauty of the urban scene and its amusingly quirky people.

Reviewer: Susan Dove Lempke | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2014

(3) K-3 Step into Reading series. Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. "Silver fish. / Gold fish. / Black fish. / Old fish." Each line of this spare rhythmic text (originally published in 1954) is accompanied by a richly colored (mostly) full-page gouache and pencil illustration. Karas's pictures provide some context (if not a narrative); each features a kid engaged in a water activity (canoeing, wading in a stream, etc.). The paperback edition includes stickers.

Reviewer: Gail Hedges

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. In the third book about the three pesky rabbits and their nemesis, Mr. McGreely (Muncha! Muncha! Muncha!; Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Hide!), the man heads to the beach to escape the bunnies. "Tippy-tippy-tippy-pat!"--they're back. Bouncy refrains and Karas's mixed-media illustrations perfectly capture the floppy-eared pests as they one-up Mr. McGreely at shell collecting, kite flying, and surfing. Followers will appreciate this story's surprising twist.

Reviewer: Sheila M. Geraty

(3) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Bored and lonely on a winter day, Ant seeks the companionship of friend Honey Bee, who just wants to be left alone. The three chapters tap into the timeless emotions of childhood in the same spirit as Frog and Toad do. Both the gouache, acrylic, and pencil illustrations and the humorous, endearing text feature delightful details and gags for new readers to spot.

Reviewer: Brittany Schlorff

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. Mr. Tiffin's class (How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?) takes a field trip to the apple orchard. The story focuses on Tara, whose daydreaming causes her to lag behind the group but helps her solve Mr. Tiffin's apple-themed riddle. Gouache, acrylic, and pencil illustrations combine crisp lines and hazy colors to call forth a perfect apple-picking day. Summarizing apple orchard facts are appended.

Reviewer: Julie Roach | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2013

(2) K-3 Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. In this engaging story and math lesson, two siblings try to capture the summer magic of a lemonade stand on a frigid, snowy day. Pauline and John-John search for quarters, shop for groceries, and entice customers. Karas's pencil-and-ink drawings reflect the feeling and color of winter; the brightness of the limeade and lemonade contrast with the otherwise muted surroundings.

Reviewer: Rebecca Kirshenbaum | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2012