Publisher's Weekly Review
There's no one way to be a person, Gehl and Heinsz suggest in this story about eschewing gender stereotypes. In bubbly art, children are seen first engaging in traditionally gendered activities: "Girls like pom-poms,/ pink, and jewels./ Boys like fighting/ pirate duels." "Except," reads the text, "when they don't." A boy in a superhero costume is surrounded by the pink-hued trappings of a tea party; elsewhere, a girl with puffy pink pigtails runs with a football. The pronoun "you" is used to convey that readers need not conform at all ("You might play with swords and knights./ Maybe twirl in flowered tights."). Gehl's text and Heinsz's artwork express the joy of individuality and personal choice: "be exactly who you are." Ages 4-8. (May) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
â€~Boys play monster trucks with glee. / Girls bake cakes and serve hot tea.â€TM Gehl's energetic rhyming text and Heinsz's lively illustrations begin by setting up stereotypical gender ideas--then put on the breaks: â€~Except when they don't.â€TM The illustrations show kids doing and wearing what they like, gender expectations be damned. Sure it's single-issue, but the â€~be exactly who you are!â€TM message is always welcome. (c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
