Kicks

A young sneakerhead extols the virtues of brand-new kicks in this picture book ode to “magic for your soles/ and soul.” Carrying saved “shoe money” in a Mason jar, dark-skinned Joshua—whose room is lined with shoe boxes and related posters—hurries to a shop to acquire an “ELECTRIC” pair of Air Max 3’s. Having donned them, Joshua goes out for a wander, head held high—past a shoe store line, across a park’s honeycomb-patterned path (“Leather not creased, tight laces,/honeycomb bottoms sweet on the floor”), and to a playground full of kids in sneakers (“Heat for your feet,/ gloves for your toes”). Making his children’s book debut, poet Garrett employs short lines and kid-friendly metaphors to convey how “NEW KICKS feel like/treats for your feet./ Cereal in your biggest bowl.” In unlined digital art that references Jean-Michel Basquiat, meanwhile, Brown (Who Are Your People?) portrays a vibrant cityscape populated by a stylishly sneaker-clad community of color with varying skin tones and body types. Though the creators suggest that kicks can be “Legendary./ Like LeBron and Jordan.// Danica, Serena, and Simone,” they also hint at their day-to-day utility—“Kicks help you shine.../ even when you have/ a shoestring-tight allowance”—in this sure-footed portrait of sneaker culture. Ages 4–7. Author’s agent: Emily Mitchell, Wernick & Pratt. Illustrator’s agent: Christy Ewers, CAT Agency. (Apr.)