Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 04/01/2017 Jabari has decided: today is the day he will jump off the high dive. But when he and his father and sister arrive at the pool, he’s suddenly not quite so sure. He gets in line, but then lets the other kids go ahead of him. He gets halfway up the ladder, but then scurries back down to do stretches. His father lets him know it’s OK to be scared, and before Jabari knows it, he has jumped off the high dive with a huge, satisfying splash. This is a small, well-told story about a child working up the courage to do something difficult. The dialogue and text are straightforward and make a nice pairing with the creatively chosen angles for the illustrations. One particularly effective full-page illustration is from Jabari’s point of view, standing on top of the diving board and looking down past his tiny brown toes to the blue rectangular pool below, truly capturing the book’s pivotal moment. In all, a welcome piece for any summertime collection. - Copyright 2017 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 05/01/2017 PreS-Gr 2—An African American boy and his baby sister and father head to an urban community pool. Jabari has completed his swim lessons and tests and is ready to jump off a diving board. In his zigzag swim trunks and swim goggles, the boy tells his dad that diving looks easy. But when he stands at the ladder and looks up, up, and up at the diving board, he starts stalling for time, saying that he has other things to do before he can make the big leap. His father reassures him that it is OK to be scared, encourages him to take deep breaths, and tells him that he might just be surprised. With renewed determination, Jabari climbs the ladder and jumps into the pool. He's flying and splashing and sinking down and swimming back up and he's done it! Jabari is a great jumper. Just enough conversational text accompanies each illustration, including several smaller vignettes on a single page that help build suspense. Mixed-media images in serene muted colors, high-rise buildings above the tree line, and the intriguing addition of faded newsprint accents strengthen the urban feel of the illustrations. VERDICT Jabari's story will help assuage the fears kids experience when faced with a new and daunting adventure. A terrific seasonal storytime read-aloud that's perfect for one-on-one sharing.—Mindy Hiatt, Salt Lake County Library Services - Copyright 2017 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.