In this uplifting picture book, Kelly DiPucchio (Zombie in Love) and Heather Ross (Weekend Sewing) prove that a gift made by hand often has more heart.
Chloe may not be good at sports or video games, but she is "very good at making stuff." A series of funny vignettes shows her resourceful use of "Dad's old shirts" (though it looks like he still finds at least one of them current) and coffee filters (much to the dismay of a sleepy mom in dire need of coffee). Chloe's dog serves as fashion model for her skills as a seamstress. While she reaches for a doll to buy as a birthday gift for her best friend, Emma, classmate London gets to it first. Chloe shrugs it off. "I'm going to make her something special," she tells London. But what?
DiPucchio and Ross's approach shows examples of Chloe's inventiveness in ways that invite young readers to try their hands at the crafts. We see Chloe's blueprint and "ingredients" (markers, a box of patterns, glitter and glue) for her projects. And though DiPucchio and Ross depict doodling as a way into her project ("Doodling helps her think"), they don't give away Chloe's gift for Emma until the very end. When London trips on her sparkly heels on the way to Emma's party and nearly ruins her gift, Chloe helps her out. Author and artist model excellence and kindness without ever getting preachy. --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness