Review Detail

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.