Harriet Gets Carried Away by Jessie Sima

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Harriet Gets Carried Away by Jessie Sima
Review Copy from Simon & Schuster
Harriet Gets Carried Away is yet another adorable book from Sima, author of Not Quite Narwhal (see below). Her palette choices for her books remind me of a bakery case full of macarons or a candy store gone wild and her illustration style is warm and comforting. What I love most about Harriet Gets Carried Away is the fact that Harriet has two dads, one Black and one white, and that is not part of the story at all. And, Harriet herself, being biracial or Black, stands out as a Black girl main character in a time when less than 10% of characters in kid's books are African / African American.

Harriet loves costumes and she wears them everywhere, all the time, and has just the right costume for every event. Getting ready for her birthday, Harriet (in her penguin costume with a red bow tie) and her dads head to the store for snacks and, "lots of party hats!" Harriet gets carried away - literally - when she sees a waddle of penguins in the freezer aisle! Forgetting about party hats, Harriet helps the penguins carry their bags of party ice to waiting hot air balloons. As they land on the frozen Antarctic, Harriet decides she really wants to be home again and creatively bargains her way back to the deli section of the very store where her dads are shopping! They take the subway home (with some fantastic aerial illustrations of the city) and get the party started! And no one gets carried away . . . A final page turn tells a different story!

Not Quite Narwhal


Out Now! Review Coming Soon...

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