Review by Booklist Review
An introvert in an extroverted world, Karima likes to listen while others prefer to talk. Keenly attuned to the sounds around her, the quiet child's ears "seek rhythm and beat." In the kitchen, she hears her mama rolling out dough and making rotis "in a one-two tempo." Karima's lyrical narration has an upbeat musicality. She notes the "click-click" of her apartment door closing and the jingle of her keys. Walking through the park, she enjoys a symphony orchestrated by wind in the oak trees and a chorus of baby birds. At Karima's favorite place, Beats & Harmony music shop, her quietness is fully accepted and appreciated: "Without silence, there's no music." Using a variety of percussion instruments, including a box, a can, and a drum, Karima grooves to her own beat and creates a song that is uniquely her own. This lovely, quiet offering speaks volumes about respecting and valuing individuality.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Simple, line-style ink, watercolor, and colored pencil drawings introduce a child, portrayed with brown skin, who prefers listening to talking. For "Quiet Karima," "my ears seek/ rhythm and beat": sound-forward text describes the "tk tk tk" of "my mama/ making rotis/ in a one-two tempo," and the shutting door and jingling of keys that occur around leaving the apartment. In first-person narration, the figure wanders through a park to a favorite place, the music store, where Mrs. T accepts Karima's quiet: "Without silence, there's no music." Karima and Mrs. T use objects that Karima's brought ("a box, a can, a pair of chopsticks") to "tap and crash,/ groove and bash." Chanani (the Shark Princess series) draws the two as they experiment with sound, then play drums together. Streams of color emerge from Karima's: "I'm an instrument,/ my heart, my body,/ part of the/ world's melody." In a world where the protagonist's quiet can feel like something that sets them apart, Karima finds a place to engage in both listening and expression. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 3--7. (Oct.)
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A seemingly withdrawn child actively engages with the world. "People call me Quiet Karima like it's my first and last name." But while the rest of the world chatters away, Karima is watching and listening. Karima's "ears seek rhythm and beat"--the sounds of the softly falling rain, the scrabbling of squirrels' paws, and the almost imperceptible noises made as Mama rolls rotis. The nearby park is a "symphony," filled with the sounds of leaves whirling, bicycle wheels rolling, and shoes hitting the pavement. Most people don't notice Karima's observational bent--except for Mrs. T, who works at the music store. The two of them appreciate the treasures that Karima has collected--"a box, a can, a pair of chopsticks"--before gathering up the shop's drums and turning the store's silence into joyous noise. In the ensuing rhythms, Karima transforms, too: a little bit quiet, a little bit loud, but always Karima. This rhyming picture book is filled with lyrically crafted lines and sweetly professed feelings. Featuring textured backgrounds, the watercolor, ink, and colored pencil illustrations have an appealingly childlike, intimate feel, capturing intangibles such as the sounds Karima so loves, as well as the child's complex emotions. The book's message--that shy or introverted young people needn't change who they are--comes through clearly. Mrs. T and Karima are brown-skinned; Karima is cued South Asian. A poignant reminder that quiet kids often have richly resonant inner lives.(Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
