Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The kids in Mrs. Appleby's kindergarten class are getting ready to graduate, but there's time for one last activity: "Who can guess what is the best thing about kindergarten?" she asks. Guesses include the playhouse, the writing center, and recess, and Mrs. Appleby affirms each suggestion: "You are a monkey bar superstar," she tells a boy named Will, adding, "We still haven't found the answer" (it turns out to be the children themselves). Leng's cozy, smudgy-edged art expresses the loving disorder of a kindergarten classroom, and Lloyd's light touch will help readers moving on from kindergarten say goodbye on a celebratory note. Last day of school stories are rare compared to ones about first days, and this one is a keeper. Ages 4-8. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 1-Readers follow a kindergarten class on graduation day in this sweet picture book. Mrs. Appleby tries to gather the distracted youngsters and asks, "Who can guess what is the best thing about kindergarten?" They shout out their responses: calendar time, the playhouse center, the block corner, and many other classroom staples, but cannot find the right answer. At the end of the ceremony, Mrs. Appleby reveals that her students are the best thing about kindergarten. The bright and detailed cartoon illustrations provide a nice addition to the minimal text. Children will enjoy picking out the many details, especially the things they recognize from their own classrooms. This is a wonderful book for teachers to read aloud at the end of the school year.-Brooke Rasche, La Crosse Public Library, WI (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
On graduation day, a patient teacher leads her class through a guessing game about what has been the best thing about kindergarten. Mrs. Appleby is proud of her class. They've made hats and decorations and learned a special song to sing for their parents. But kindergarten is not over quite yet--there is time for one last, and most important, lesson. "Who can guess what is the best thing about kindergarten?" The students come up with lots of good answers--calendar time, the playhouse center, the block corner, arts and crafts time, math time, the writing center, storytime, recess--but none is correct, although Mrs. Appleby kindly reinforces the accomplishments and enjoyment her students have gained from each of these activities. The guessing game is interrupted by the graduation ceremony, which goes without a hitch, the proud students each doing their parts and receiving their diplomas. And at the end, she finally shares the answer: "You, my students, are the best thing about kindergarten." The hurried, scribbly feel of Leng's illustrations lend them the busy, hectic reality of a kindergarten classroom, especially on the exciting last day of school. She neatly captures the messiness and creativity that characterize young children, and her kindergarteners are a nice mix of races and genders. The best thing about this book? Its reassuring look back at all the things the happy and successful students have enjoyed about kindergarten--equally valuable at the beginning and the end of the school year. (Picture book. 3-5)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
