Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 06/01/2021 *Starred Review* This joyous, uncompromising, vividly illustrated picture book celebrates bodies—everybody's bodies. Each page is dedicated to one physical aspect: height, size, shape, skin color, arms, tummies, scars, prosthetics—just about any feature that young kids might notice (and comment on). Three lines of rhymed verse list various manifestations (Leg hair, armpit hair, / fuzzy-lip-and-chin hair, / brows-meet-in-the-middle hair) followed by the repeated message: Bodies are cool! The wonderfully detailed illustrations (drawn by a left hand with a crooked index finger, according to author and illustrator Feder) spill from the pages, showing an array of multicultural, multiabled, multishaped characters of all ages fully enjoying everyday activities: the beach, an ice-cream store, a picnic, and so on. The spread that showcases eyes (Hazel eyes, brown eyes,/ monolids and round eyes, / Blind and wearing-glasses eyes) is set in a dark movie theater, with the glowing whites of characters' eyes emphasizing the variations. This would make a great read-aloud, especially as the Bodies are cool! refrain invites audience participation. Intended for young audiences, this unabashed promotion of body positivity packs a punch and reminds readers to respect and love every body—including their own. This is a timely message with universal applications. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 07/01/2021 PreS-Gr 3—With colorful pages of people in all shapes and sizes, this book both serves as a joyous read-aloud for small and large groups and as a book for individual study and discovery. It works as an introduction to diversity without being explicitly about that, which is a gloriously refreshing take on the universality of the human experience. Young readers can look at the full-page color cartoon drawings for true-to-life representation of people in everyday group situations, such as a public swimming pool, the park, dance class, movie theater, and public transit. Displayed is a richly detailed tapestry of people with many skin tones, hair colors, shapes and sizes, clothing choices, and abilities; examples include wheelchairs, a hijab swimsuit, prosthetics on adults and kids, diabetics with insulin pumps, etc. More importantly, in a book about body positivity, the drawings represent people as they are in real life, "tall, short, wide, or narrow." The approach to both body image and body concepts is to use people-centric language and imagery that doesn't divide along explicit lines. Each spread with its dense drawing of people joined together in a group activity focuses on traits (body shape, skin tone, hair, eyes, faces, etc.) in a repetitive, rhythmic sequence. Feder includes representations of Africans, Asians, Muslims, and whites from small sizes to plus sizes in all positions. This book is an excellent pairing with Todd Parr's It's Okay To Be Different.VERDICT With lilting dancelike rhythm through word repetition and brightly colored detailed images, this is a timely and worthy addition for every collection.—Vi Ha, Los Angeles P.L. - Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.