Scarecited on the First Day of School
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- USD 10.99
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- USD 10.99
Publisher Description
For fans of School’s First Day of School, this is a picture book about a young girl who is feeling mixed emotions about her first day of school.
Some feelings are so big, one word just doesn’t cut it.
It’s the first day of school for Afua! There’s no one word to name her feelings. Is she scared? Excited? Oh wait, she’s scarecited! Her own combination of both. Why should she have to choose?
Scarecited on the First Day of School is a charming picture book that reminds us all that having the courage to be our authentic self is always just enough, and you can feel more than one big emotion at the same time. But if there isn’t one word to describe those feelings . . . there’s beauty in making it yourself.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Vocab mash-ups propel this emotionally aware first-day-of-school tale. Narrator Afua, portrayed with brown skin, starts off experiencing emotions including "scarecited" ("scared and excited") and "shurious" ("shy but curious"). But roll call leads to Afua's feeling "sadbarrassed" after the teacher mispronounces their name. As the day continues, further portmanteaus from Agostini capture the child's reactions to slime-making in science and eating a mac 'n' cheese lunch. Echoing the text's emphasis on recombinatory approaches, brightly colored digital brushwork and handmade textures give Watkins's blocky artwork a collage feel. And as the school day winds down, a "bravous" feeling ("brave but nervous. My heart is pounding fast!") precedes the protagonist's correcting the teacher's earlier error—a winningly reassuring resolution in a work that focuses on emotion-naming and empowerment. Background characters are portrayed with various abilities and skin tones. Ages 3–6.
