I haven’t had the chance to express how thrilled I was that the 2024 Newbery Medal went to The Eyes and the Impossible, which was written by Dave Eggers and illustrated by Shawn Harris. Apparently, these two are not ones to rest on their laurels, as each of them has a new picture book this month.
Soren’s Seventh Song by Dave Eggers, illustrated by Mark Hoffmann (Harry N. Abrams, 56 pages, grades 2-5). Soren is a humpback whale teenager (or the equivalent of that in whale years) who hates the long, droning songs the adult whales sing. After much trial and error, he comes up with his own song, but when he performs it for his peers, they’re not impressed. One even vomits into his underarm (underfin, actually). Does Soren give up? No. He takes the feedback, particularly from his very blunt friend Hans, and makes revisions. Seven revisions, to be exact. And as he travels through the sea singing his seventh song, he notices that the lobsters are grooving, seaweeds are swaying, and barracudas are boogeying. Soren’s hard work finally pays off, and his seventh song becomes the hit whale song of the year.
Although the narration is third person, it reminded me of Johannes’s voice in The Eyes and the Impossible: funny and wise at the same time, with enough confidence to keep going despite multiple setbacks. It’s kind of a long tale, what with the seven songs and all, but I’m still considering reading it to the tough audience of fifth grade. If they don’t vomit into their underarms, I’ll consider it a win.
The Teeny-Weeny Unicorn by Shawn Harris (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 48 pages, ages 4-8). The titular unicorn is sort of the Stuart Little of the unicorn world, significantly smaller than the rest of his family. His much larger siblings use him as a piece in their chess games and make fun of his attempts to cannonball into the moat. Tired of their mocking, he runs off into the lawn, where he eventually comes face to face with an angry gnome. It turns out the teeny-weeny unicorn is much bigger than the gnome, and accidentally put his hoof through the gnome’s expensive sports car. Fortunately, the unicorn family is able to make things right, and readers learn an important lesson: We are all teeny-weeny. We are all giant. And we are all just the right size.
Who can resist a unicorn? Kids will love this story for sure, and Shawn Harris’s illustrations add to the fun. Dave Eggers and Soren teach us to be persistent, and Shawn and the teeny-weeny unicorn offer a lesson in self-acceptance.
