Just Like Millie

Castillo's ink, watercolor, and soft pastel illustrations show the girl's budding courage: at first she's always glued to Mom, but with every encounter her face and posture relax more until she finds herself smiling and even waving hello. . . filled with robust colors, cleverly helps young audiences focus in on minute but crucial changes in facial expression and body language.

A heartening picture book on a timeless topic: making friends.

A sweet, child-centered tribute to fur babies everywhere.

After a child and mother unpack boxes in their new apartment, Castillo (This Is a Story) draws the pale-skinned youth, who has a mop of tousled hair, playing with blocks and declining a suggestion to meet kids their age at the local park--"I didn't mind being alone. It felt safe." The offer of a playdate produces a hot face and wet eyes; "NO," the child says, clinging to their mother. Story time at the bookstore? "I shrank to the ground and cried till my face was bright red." Then the mother--who, notably, never oversteps her child's clear boundaries--concocts a surprise outing to an animal shelter, where they meet a "not too big, not too small dog./ A just right dog." Millie needs three walks a day, and "on every walk we met at/ least one new person./ It was less scary each time./ I felt safe with Millie." The experience of Millie's friend-making success, and the pleasure that the dog takes in companionship, transforms the narrator: "Mom," the child whispers, about a parent-child duo they see at the dog park, "should we go say hello?" Castillo's tale persuades without sounding prescriptive, and her signature artwork highlights both a close, transformative bond, and the way that new connections made voluntarily can ease upheaval. Secondary characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 3-7. Agent: Paul Rodeen, Rodeen Literary. (Apr.)

Copyright 2024 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

The art, created with ink, watercolors, and soft pastels, sensitively portrays the characters' emotions while depicting their lively neighborhood. A heartening picture book on a timeless topic: making friends.
—Booklist (starred review)

Castillo's tale persuades without sounding prescriptive, and her signature artwork highlights both a close, transformative bond, and the way that new connections made voluntarily can ease upheaval.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review) 

Castillo's signature thick-lined, textured art creates cozy neighborhood settings that beautifully accentuate this gentle story about the power of connection. . . With the endpapers acting as establishing shots, the illustrations—mostly double-page spreads with plenty of white space—feel almost cinematic in their slice-of-life perspectives. Careful readers might notice a few easter eggs hidden in the illustrations throughout, including some of Castillo's other books and the black dog that eventually becomes Millie's friend. A sweet, child-centered tribute to fur babies everywhere.
—Kirkus Reviews

Caldecott Honor winner Castillo's vibrantly colored ink, watercolor, and pastel drawings add texture and life to every detail. . . The quiet story is given life by its drawings' dynamic use of space, ranging from full-page, wordless scenes to smaller vignetted moments to a particularly sweet introduction to Millie. . . Millie's constantly wagging tail makes this story a hopeful read-aloud for any family whose members struggle with shyness.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books