Carnival Queen

It’s Carnival Day and Kayla is excited! CARNIVAL QUEEN follows her as she gets ready for the exciting day when the unthinkable happens: her costume rips. As she goes with her mom and granny to find help, her granny reminds her about the reason behind Carnival.

What I Loved:
Carnival is a celebration with a lot of vibrancy, joy, and life and the illustrations manage to capture that in the pages. Bright colors, fun movements, and lifelike expressions manage to bring the story to life. Even with the vibrant colors and large illustrations, the artist gave room for the text so that the book remains readable.

Kayla is a sweet girl with emotions, and it was nice to see those emotions being acknowledged in the story. She’s allowed to be upset and excited and worried. It’s a simple thing, not even expressly said in the text but shown in the illustrations.

What Left Me Wanting More:
Kayla and her granny bring up the ancestors a couple of times in this picture. While I understand that it is not a nonfiction book and that the author likely wants to keep the book light and full of joy, more information about the history of Carnival day would have been really nice. It would’ve added an additional layer to the book, providing a strong backstory to explain why community is so important during an event like this.

Final Verdict:
CARNIVAL QUEEN is a cute picture book with vibrant pictures and a sense of life and vibrance that emanates from the page.

Kayla is excited to be taking part in the carnival celebrations this year. Her mom and grandmother help her to get ready, but she rips her dress! Will she get it mended in time?
What I liked: Kayla is a great character and I loved her enthusiasm for carnival and how much she gets involved. The book has some great illustrations that really help tell the story and it is great for kids who want to know more about other cultures. It also has a very positive message that when we come together we can achieve anything.
What left me wanting more: I would have liked to see a little more info about the carnival and more on the customs.
Overall verdict: a fun read for kids with a positive message at the heart of it. I would definitely recommend it especially to any children who live near the celebrations and want to know more.
Good Points
Bright colours
A great way to teach kids about other cultures