Bubbles . . . UP!

by Jacqueline Davies, Sonia Sánchez (Illustrator)

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

The quintessential "outdoor" book from Jacqueline Davies, author of The Lemonade War and art by the brilliant Sonia Sanchez (Evelyn Del Rey is Moving Away). Taking place at a public pool and mostly underwater, there's friendship, diversity and creativity. There’s also a spread that so perfectly depicts what happens when the thunder starts rumbling and the lightning strikes but you're just having too much fun in the pool! Bubbles … Up! is easily a new summertime favorite.

An everyday visit to the pool transforms into an unforgettable celebration of the water in this remarkable picture book from Jacqueline Davies, the award-winning author of children's classic The Lemonade War, and Sonia Sánchez, the illustrator of Meg Medina's Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away.

A day at the community pool is full of unwater magic—dunking and diving with friends; somersaulting, walking on your hands, and bursting up through the surface like a tortoise. But when a thunderstorm comes and a little brother ventures too close to the pool’s edge, will our main character be quick enough and brave enough to save the day?

In this energetic read-aloud, the words swim off the pages as the underwater world comes to life through lush, dynamic illustrations and visual poetry. Journey to an imaginative world where, always and forever, bubbles . . . rise . . . UP!

* Junior Library Guild Selection * Booklist 2021 Editor's Choice: Books for Youth *

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062836618
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/04/2021
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	334,464
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 11.20(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jacqueline Davies is the bestselling author of the Lemonade War series, which has inspired millions of young readers across the world to raise money for charitable causes. She is also the award-winning author of the Sydney and Taylor series, illustrated by Deborah Hocking, and Bubbles . . . UP!, illustrated by Sonia Sánchez, which was selected as an ALA Booklist Editors’ Choice and a Bank Street College Best Children's Book of the Year. Visit her online at jacquelinedavies.net.  

Sonia Sánchez is the award-winning illustrator of many picture books. She paints with both traditional and digital brushes, using layers of texture in her work to evoke emotion and movement. She lives with her husband, son, and a sleepyhead cat in a blue house near the Mediterranean Sea.

Editorial Reviews

★ 10/25/2021

A remarkable fusion of text and images captures the effervescent freedom of swimming underwater: “PLUNGE!/ Under/ under/ under/ Bubbles... up!” A black-haired, light-skinned young swimmer in bright orange goggles and a striped bathing suit is at the pool with Mom and golden-haired “young one”; this is the older child’s chance to show what they can do. The movement of rising air bubbles serves as metaphor for the youngster’s exuberance: “mouth bubbles/ nose bubbles/ ear bubbles/ rear bubbles... up they rise/ And you burst through! Surface like a porpoise!” Liveliness characterizes the child’s play in the water, and Davies (Panda Pants) plays with words, too: “You under-sit. You under-talk. You under-smile. You under-walk.” Sánchez’s (Evelyn Del Rey Is Moving Away) inspired typography amps up the spreads; verses float in spreads of cool blue water and streams of bubbles, their movements mimicking the swimmer’s. Even a sudden thunderstorm and the clearing of the pool can’t dampen the story’s spirits. Later, as the child surfaces triumphantly with “young one”’s yellow duck, Davies affirms both swimmer and reader—“You! You... the superhero!...Wonderful you. You are a wonder”—in this fully immersive reading experience. Ages 4–8. (May)

Publishers Weekly

"A swimming pool and a young swimmer create watery magic together. Davies’ lighthearted, lively poetry describes the singular joy of an afternoon at the neighborhood pool in this celebration of underwater swimming and splashing. Sánchez’s illustrations capture the way sunlight ripples through water and convey the blissful freedom of weightlessness, diving to the bottom of an imaginary ocean world and rocketing to the top amid bubbles. The exuberant sense of being purely in the moment is delightful." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Davies’ cascading lines of verse text read aloud beautifully, rewarding listeners with wordplay [and leave] space for Sánchez’s effervescent illustrations to work their magic. The imaginative underwater scenes are particularly fine. This high-spirited picture book celebrates the joy in swimming. A mesmerizing book that conjures up a summer day." — Booklist (starred review)

"Descriptive verse text with a scribble of clouds capture a bubble-filled watery world. It’s easy for swimmers to dream and imagine the pool filled with saltwater depths of treasure. VERDICT A recommended first purchase for all libraries, this title will interest readers who love the world underwater, or those who recognize the freedom and confidence borne of immersive play." — School Library Journal (starred review)

"Every turquoise-covered page evokes the sound of splashes, excited squeals, and squeaky inflatables familiar to frequent swimmers. An ebullient ode to a simple summertime joy that will surely encourage both novice and adventurous swimmers to make a splash of their own." — Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher

"Davies’ cascading lines of verse text read aloud beautifully, rewarding listeners with wordplay [and leave] space for Sánchez’s effervescent illustrations to work their magic. The imaginative underwater scenes are particularly fine. This high-spirited picture book celebrates the joy in swimming. A mesmerizing book that conjures up a summer day."

Booklist (starred review)

"Every turquoise-covered page evokes the sound of splashes, excited squeals, and squeaky inflatables familiar to frequent swimmers. An ebullient ode to a simple summertime joy that will surely encourage both novice and adventurous swimmers to make a splash of their own."

Horn Book Magazine

★ 04/01/2021

K-Gr 2—A community pool is a place of wonder—mouth, nose, or ear bubbles all rise through water, filled with light. A small pink-skinned girl gives readers the tour, to follow the bubbles up until you break the surface, and dive back in. All in the pool celebrate life under water. One can under-sit, under-talk, under-stand, or complete an under-handstand. Similes communicate the motion amid bubbles "light as butterflies," as the girl urges her body up to "surface like a porpoise" and "shoot like a rocket ship." Families of all races play in the water as text and word placement highlight movement in digital paintings with swirls of dark and light-filtered color. Descriptive verse text with a scribble of clouds capture a bubble-filled watery world. It's easy for swimmers to dream and imagine the pool filled with saltwater depths of treasure before an ominous rumble announces a thunderstorm. The interruption provides both a visual downpour and an alliterative storm of words, and soon, everyone is back in the water. VERDICT A recommended first purchase for all libraries, this title will interest readers who love the world underwater, or those who recognize the freedom and confidence borne of immersive play.—Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano I.S.D., TX

School Library Journal

★ 2021-03-17
A swimming pool and a young swimmer create watery magic together.

Davies’ lighthearted, lively bit of poetry describes the singular joy of an afternoon at the neighborhood pool in this celebration of underwater swimming and splashing. “PLUNGE! / under / under / under,” reads the text as a child with black hair and light brown skin and a colorfully striped one-piece bathing suit dives and floats and soars underwater. “Bubbles…UP!” A younger, lighter-skinned little person wearing floaties and orange swim trunks stays by the poolside with an adult while a crowd of children with many different hair types and colors of skin splashes and shouts in the pool. Sánchez’s illustrations capture the way sunlight ripples through water over blue-patterned tiles and convey the blissful freedom of weightlessness, diving to the bottom of an imaginary ocean world and rocketing to the top amid bubbles. A brief thundershower clears the pool, and everyone huddles near the snack bar—but when the all-clear sounds, it’s back to the water. There’s a dramatic rescue of a rubber duck: “You are fast…/ —aqueous— / A watery dolphin, all flash and fin.” There’s cuddling—for a moment—in a towel after, and then back to the water, where the smaller child joins in the fun at last. The exuberant sense of being purely in the moment is delightful. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11-by-17-inch double-page spreads viewed at 19% of actual size.)

Superbly splashy, immersive, and effervescent. (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews