Review - Miracle on 34th Street

Miracle on 34th Street
by Valentine Davies & Susanna Leonard Hill
illustrated by James Newman Gray
Date: 2018
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

For a little girl named Susan, Christmas could be any other day. She doesn't believe in Santa Claus or magic or miracles of any kind. Then one day she meets Kriss Kringle. As she doubtfully tells him the gifts she most wishes for, deep down Susan finds herself hoping that just maybe, he is the real thing. Based on the original holiday classic, Miracle on 34th Street is a heartwarming story about generosity, imagination, and the spirit of Christmas.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

Well, that was disappointing.

Miracle on 34th Street is one of my favourite Christmas stories. I'm familiar with it through its two popular film versions (with the more recent one being my favourite). This picture book is based on the original novella and has been adapted into a picture-book format. Does it work? In a word: no.

There's far too much that's glossed over, leading to a choppy plot and flat characterization. Here, Susan is a cardboard little girl, without the lively skepticism that both Natalie Wood and Mara Wilson brought to the role. The narrative suffers from some questionable style choices, and some of the plot points don't make much sense when they're ripped out of context by the shortened format. (For example, Mr. Sawyer's actions against Kris don't make much sense, given that the old man was bringing customers into the store.)

The illustrations don't help bring the characters to life, either. While they're adequate, there's a flatness to everyone that makes the whole book look like it was cast with lifeless dolls.

This is one of those rare cases where the movie is better than the book. I would not recommend this particular picture book. Go check out one of the film versions instead, either the 1947 version with Natalie Wood and Edmund Gwenn or the 1994 version with Mara Wilson and Richard Attenborough. This story really does require more than 32 pages to do it justice.

Premise: 4/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 2/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 1/5

Overall: 2.33 out of 5

Review - Mars' First Friends

Mars' First Friends
by Susanna Leonard Hill
illustrated by Elisa Paganelli
Date: 2020
Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS Jabberwocky
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book non-fiction
Pages: 42
Format: e-book
Source: NetGalley

From the creators of New York Times bestseller Moon's First Friends!

Mars' First Friends is a universal story about man's—and Mars'—best friends—our beloved pets. In this sweet solar system book, Mars is lonely and just wants someone to play with, but the planets are all too busy. That is until Earth sends her little brother, Mars, his first pets: the rovers Spirit and Opportunity! With its darling prose and charming illustrations, this book offers a new take on the Mars rovers stories, and also includes educational back matter with an abundance of information about the solar system, Mars, and the Mars rovers.

(synopsis from NetGalley; see it on Goodreads)

This is a cute book that combines a fictional story about an anthropomorphized planet with scientific facts about the planets in our solar system (Mars in particular).

Mars longs for a pet. His siblings hog Pluto. The others don't feel like playing with him, either. He asks his father, the Sun, for help, but all his dad tells him is to play with his siblings. One day, though, his sister Earth sends him a gift: rovers named Spirit and Opportunity!

The premise is kind of cute, although not strictly factual. The story about a kid longing for a pet is pretty universal, though, and the ending is sweet. But the book's real strength lies in the non-fiction section at the back. Kids who are interested in outer space, planets, or exploratory missions to Mars will probably find this part fascinating.

Turning the Mars rovers into pets is a cute concept. It works.

Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Jabberwocky for providing a digital ARC.

Premise: 3/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 4/5
Illustrations: 4/5
Originality: 4/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3.5 out of 5

Review - Grandma's Girl

Grandma's Girl
by Susanna Leonard Hill
illustrated by Laura Bobbiesi
Date: 2020
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: NetGalley

Nothing truly compares to the special bond between grandma and granddaughter. With heartwarming rhymes and beautiful illustrations of diverse grandmothers and granddaughters, Grandma's Girl is the perfect way to bring generations together. It's a touching story about all the things a young girl learns and becomes, and how Grandma understands, because she's been there before.

Of all the most marvelous things in this world
There are few that can truly compare
To the heartwarming, special, unbreakable bond
That a grandma and granddaughter share.

(synopsis from NetGalley; see it on Goodreads)

I've read a few books in this vein now, so I'm starting to be able to rank them. This book falls somewhere in the middle. It has a sweet sentiment and cute illustrations, but it seems overly long and has sections of clunky rhyme.

This would be a nice book for little girls who still have living grandmas. The final copy will apparently have some stationery so the grandmother can write a letter to her granddaughter. That's fine, but it further limits the audience to kids who have good relationships with their grandmothers. As this is already aimed solely at girls with living grandmas, anything that further excludes potential readers might not be a great thing.

But if this book fits your needs, there's really nothing wrong with it. Similar books a grandma might want to check out for her grandkids are It's Good to Have a Grandma by Maryann Macdonald and Priscilla Burris or Grandma's Christmas Wish by Helen Foster James and Petra Brown, both of which approach the topic from a more gender-neutral perspective (for those grandmas who don't actually have any granddaughters).

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Wonderland for providing a digital ARC.

Premise: 3/5
Meter: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3 out of 5

Review - Moon's First Friends

Moon's First Friends
by Susanna Leonard Hill
illustrated by Elisa Paganelli
Date: 2019
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 40
Format: e-book
Source: library

From high up in the sky, the Moon has spent her whole life watching Earth and hoping for someone to visit. Dinosaurs roam, pyramids are built, and boats are made, but still no one comes. Will friends ever come visit her?

Commemorate the extraordinary Apollo 11 spaceflight mission with this heartwarming story of the Moon who just wants a friend.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This book teaches kids about history and science, framing the story as a wish for friendship by a lonely moon.

Starting billions of years ago, the story follows the Moon as she watches life on Earth evolve. But until humans come on the scene, she doesn't have much hope of getting to say hello to anyone in person.

The story is cute, and accented by sweet illustrations. The narrative itself is simple, and likely intended for much younger readers than the more scientific notes at the end. Those are nice, too, giving a basic overview of NASA's program to reach the Moon, as well as technical information about the rockets and modules used to get there. There might be a bit of a difference in the audience between these two parts of the book, but younger kids who are really interested in this sort of thing can of course "grow into" the more advanced section of the book.

Overall, this is a cute fictionalized tale about a real scientific subject. Kids who are interested in space and astronauts will likely find much to enjoy here.

Quotable moment:

Premise: 4/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 4/5
Illustrations: 4/5
Originality: 4/5

Enjoyment: 3/5

Overall: 3.67 out of 5