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Nicole Hadley (380 KP) rated Riley Can Be Anything in Books

Jun 16, 2018

Riley Can Be Anything by Hamilton Davina is a wonderful book and illustrations that shows children being able to see themselves in the books they read. Riley is spending time with his older cousin Joe. Joe asks Riley what he wants to be when he grows up; however, Riley can't decide. Joe tells Riley about all the great career opportunities that others in their family have had, like chefs, musicians, or teachers. Riley really can be anything. I really liked this book about the ability for young Riley to be anything he can.Young Riley imagines and dreams of all the possibilities for his life with the help of Cousin Joe. A great story that shows that Riley is only limited by his ability to dream of big things he can do and be.

The rhyming pattern will appeal to toddler age children, but the story is complex enough and interesting enough to hold the attention of early readers and elementary students.

I recommend this book for anyone teaching children that their dreams are only limited by themselves.

Kudos

Lou Grande (148 KP) rated Gracefully Grayson in Books

May 27, 2018

Gracefully Grayson

Ami Polonsky | 2014 | LGBTQ+, Young Adult (YA)

8.0

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

I have to say, this book was much better than I was expecting. I'm always wary going into a book about trans issues not written by trans people. But Grayson's story was treated thoughtfully and with respect. (Such a stereotypical name, though!) However, I'm disappointed that this story focused so much on violence and social resistance to trans people. While that can often be the reality for some of us, this book is intended for young readers, and I'm concerned that this could be scary for them. On the other hand, cisgendered kids who pick this one up might be more empathetic towards trans people in general. (But would cisgender kids be inspired to pick GRACEFULLY GRAYSON up if they've already formed negative opinions on trans issues? I don't know; I'm thankfully not a parent.)

Another thing: did this story really have to coalesce in a bathroom? It felt lazy. Where we pee is not the only political issue we face, and it's obvious the author knows this. I don't know. This book left me with mixed feelings.