Just Ask!

July 22, 2019
Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor’s (Turning Pages) experience as a child with juvenile diabetes spurred this meditation on the idea that we’re all different. Using a compassionate, forthright tone, she engages the metaphor of a garden to explain how variation creates beauty: “Thousands of plants bloom together, but every flower, every berry, and every leaf is different... Kids are all different too.” Extending the theme, artwork by López (The Day You Begin) shows children working together on a spacious garden. Starting with her own story and continuing with López’s experience with asthma, Sotomayor next includes 12 additional characters with diverse experiences, such as dyslexia, a nut allergy, and Tourette’s syndrome. The children introduce themselves, sometimes noting differences along a spectrum (Jordan and Tian, both autistic, communicate differently). Characters engage with readers, too; after describing how he gets around in a wheelchair, Anthony asks, “How do you get from place to place?” The title expresses Sotomayor’s conviction that asking, far from being impolite, banishes isolation. If anyone doesn’t “feel ready to explain,” “I just ask my parents or my teachers and they help me to understand.” A quiet musing about how “each of us has unique powers to share.” Ages 4–8.

August 1, 2019
Drawing on her experiences as a child with juvenile diabetes, the Supreme Court justice addresses kids' curiosity about disability and illness. "Each of us grows in our own way," says Sonia, a Latina child based on the author, as she and her friends plant a garden. Just as each plant has a "different color, different shape, and different purpose," kids are "all different too." Encouraging curious readers to "JUST ASK," Sonia and 11 friends introduce their respective disabilities and chronic illnesses--ranging from blindness to nut allergies--by asking such questions as "How do you use your senses?" and "Are you really good at something?" The kids' matter-of-fact explanations blend strengths and difficulties. Bianca, who has dyslexia, "love[s] learning by doing things"; Manuel, who has ADHD, "can get frustrated when [they] really feel the need to move around even though [they're] supposed to sit still." Though the number of conditions may tax younger readers' attention spans, kids with those conditions who "don't feel ready to explain" will appreciate the text's inclusiveness; as Sonia acknowledges, "Not everyone is comfortable answering questions about themselves." Enlivening the familiar theme, López's bold figures, vibrant colors, and close perspective welcome readers into a garden bursting with assorted blossoms, insects, and birds. Refreshingly, most characters present as kids of color of various heritages, ranging from black and Latinx to South and Southeast Asian. One presents white. An affirmative, delightfully diverse overview of disabilities. (Informational picture book. 4-8)

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October 18, 2019

PreS-Gr 2-Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor opens her celebration of diversity with a letter to readers in which she writes about her experience growing up in the 1960s and being diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. She compares communities to a garden in which each plant has a different purpose. Readers are then introduced to a diverse group of children who create a beautiful garden. Each child tells a bit about themselves and then asks a question that is answered by the following character. On the final spread, readers are shown the beautiful garden now completed and filled with all the children from the story. This is a hopeful and sunny exploration of the many things that make us unique. The clever question-and-answer structure and conversational tone encourages readers to answer the questions themselves, while the informative text gives caregivers a useful foundation of information to begin a conversation. López's dynamic and vibrant illustrations emphasize each character's unique abilities with inventive pairings of natural elements. On one page a young Sotomayor is shown sitting in the center of an enormous red rose with prominent thorns. The text explains that because she is diabetic, she must prick her finger several times a day to measure the sugar in her blood. Vijay, who is Deaf, is shown standing next to a young sapling and signing "tree" in American Sign Language. VERDICT A thoughtful and empathetic story of inclusion that encourages readers to ask questions and educate themselves about their peers. A first purchase.-Laken Hottle, Providence Community Library, RI

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