Lukoff, Kyle. I’m Sorry You Got Mad. Julie Kwon, Illus. Dial, 08/2024. [32]pp. Picture Book. Trade $18.99. 978-0-5934-6291-1. GRADES Kindergarten–4. OUTSTANDING.
Saying sorry is one thing. Often, kids have to apologize for doing something before they actually feel sorry. In this epistolary picture book, Jack, who has brown skin and straight black hair, has to apologize to Zoe for knocking down her castle. The arc of the plot covers Jack’s variety of feelings as he tries to process the chain of events leading up to the castle tear down. Kwon’s hand-lettered illustrations, inked before digital and color collaging, effectively convey how conflicted Jack is feeling about the situation. The teacher is both empathetic and fair as Jack is asked to revise his work repeatedly. By the end of the book the reader can’t help but feel for all the characters in the story.
Beth Gousman—Montclair Elementary School / Oakland Unified School District