Available:*
Library | Audience | Home Location | Material Type | Shelf Number | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... Central | Kid/Juvenile | Picture books | Kids book | E HARRI | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
Bronze winner in the 2016 IPPY Awards for Children's Books 7 & Under
Say hello to the mostly sweet, but sometimes sour, Wisteria Jane Hummell. Named after her mother's favorite flower, Wisteria Jane sees the world in her own special way. She tells her friends that her favorite color is "rainbow." She loves jumping in mud puddles and she desperately wants a pet unicorn. Wisteria Jane's days are filled with adventures, giggles, bumps, bruises, and some important life lessons.
In her first adventure, Wisteria Jane learns how to be a thoughtful friend as she hones the skill of being honest without adding the "not so nice" truths she is so tempted to share. Through Wisteria Jane's experiences, children learn important lessons about honesty, friendship, and people's feelings.
Author Notes
As a mother of three kids, author Amber Harris understands the amazing and sometimes crazy experiences of childhood and parenting. Using her sense of humor and approachability she has become an emerging parenting expert with a successful blog focused on homeschooling and speaking engagements on parenting children with autism. Amber loves sharing her experiences and knowledge with others and looks forward to sharing more Wisteria Jane stories with her fans in the future. She has a master's degree in education from Arizona State University and currently resides in Plano, Texas with her family.
Best-selling illustrator Ard Hoyt has used picture books as an opportunity for exploration since before he could read. Once he realized he could create his own drawings the possibilities were endless. He has illustrated over twenty-five children's books, including the New York Times bestsellers I'm a Manatee by John Lithgow and The Hair of Zoe Fleefenbacher Goes to School by Laurie Halse Anderson. Ard draws inspiration from his wife and five daughters and their home in Bentonville, Arkansas. His hope is that anyone can open up one of his picture books and travel to a different world.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 2-Wisteria Jane is a spunky girl with a lot of attitude. She is opinionated and energetic, and sometimes her "truth-telling" gets her into trouble. In this story, the trouble comes when Wisteria tells her best friend that she was ugly as a baby and refuses to apologize. The book then turns into a teaching moment about watching what you say and keeping some hurtful thoughts to yourself. Unfortunately, the story falls short and the moral seems forced. Wisteria learns to tell her "mouth not to say all the things her brain thinks" with hardly any coaching at all and is able to control her anger seemingly effortlessly. The pictures are pleasant and detailed, which helps to keep the story interesting and may entertain some readers. However, this title is less inspired than other existing books about friendship and kindness, and readers would likely find more enjoyment from Helen Lester's Hurty Feelings (HMH, 2014). VERDICT An additional purchase for picture book collections needing supplemental titles about kindness to friends.-Ellen Norton, Naperville Public Library, Naperville, IL © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Debut author Harris introduces Wisteria Jane, an inquisitive girl with springy blonde curls, gangly limbs, a gap between her front teeth, and a folksy narrative voice ("My momma named me Wisteria on account of wisteria being her most favorite flower"). When Wisteria's friend Ella shows her one of her baby pictures, Wisteria tells her that perhaps she was named after an elephant, since she looks like "a wrinkly mess" in the photo. A heart-to-heart conversation with Wisteria's mother, about not always saying what's on one's mind, leads to an apology and reconciliation between the friends. Hoyt creates a peaceful suburban neighborhood bursting with vegetation and brings a caricatured aesthetic to the characters that matches Wisteria's big personality. While there's little that's novel about the story's approach to the subject of empathy, a good-natured sense of humor helps carry it along. Ages 3-8. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
Although the text has an old-timey tone, this is a contemporary story about a little girl who learns that always telling the truth can hurt another person's feelings--sometimes you have to think before you speak. Although the message is obvious, it's nice to see Wisteria apologize to her friend and restore good will between them. The washed-out-looking illustrations convey emotion well. (c) Copyright 2016. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A little girl who takes telling the truth too far learns to temper her tongue and make up with a friend. Wisteria Jane's curly blond hair is a wild tangle, which reflects her thoughts perfectly. Her mom always tells her, "I named you after the most beautiful flower I'd ever seen, because you were the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen." Wisty's baby pictures reflect that, so she gets to thinking what her friend Ella's baby pictures might look like. It's a quick jump from the wrinkled newborn she sees to telling Ella that her full name must be Elephant, as she was a "wrinkly mess." Well, that doesn't go over too well, and Wisty's mom has a chat with her about hurting her friends' feelings and knowing when it's better to keep her mouth shut than to tell the brutal truth. Wisty gets practice when she brings her apology picturea rainbow unicornto Ella. Her face gets red, her mouth turns down, her eyes bug, her fists clench, but taking a deep breath and blowing it out slowly help her regain her cool and not say what she thinks. Hoyt's loose, cartoonlike illustrations are bright and cheery, and the facial expressions and body language are highlights. A valuable lesson about tact for any age. (Picture book. 3-7) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
