How to Have a Birthday

by Mary Lyn Ray, Cindy Derby (Illustrator)

Overview

Joyful and utterly unique, this vibrant picture book celebrates the best birthday gift of all: a whole day that is yours to unwrap.

Wise and infinitely cozy, Mary Lyn Ray’s simple text and Cindy Derby’s fluid, playful illustrations invite readers of all ages to view that most extraordinary of ordinary days in a simple but festive new light, as if for the first time. What makes birthdays special? Whether you are turning three or one hundred and three, whether you are feted by others or sing yourself happy, the anticipation and surprise of the day you were born never fail to deliver “that shivery feeling that belongs only to a birthday.” An ideal gift for new and expectant parents, for children marking a birthday or attending their first party—for everyone who was ever born! This exuberant celebration in words and pictures will leave you feeling a warm connection to the cycle of life and growth.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781536207415
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	09/14/2021
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	914,775
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Mary Lyn Ray is the author of The House of Grass and Sky, illustrated by E. B. Goodale; the New York Times bestseller Stars, illustrated by Marla Frazee; and several other distinguished picture books. She lives in New Hampshire.

Cindy Derby is the author-illustrator of Two Many Birds and How to Walk Like an Ant and the illustrator of The Boy and the Gorilla by Jackie Azúa Kramer, Outside In by Deborah Underwood, and other acclaimed picture books. She lives in San Francisco.

Editorial Reviews

06/21/2021

“On the morning of your birthday, you can tell already that the day is not like others,” intones second-person narration by Ray (The House of Grass and Sky). On what other days does one wear a crown at breakfast, or behold a stack of presents, or be officially sanctioned to “try out how it’s different being one year older”? Using radiant, translucent pastels, pencil, watercolor, and gouache to show celebrations in different seasons, Derby (Two Many Birds) centers three children throughout this book’s spreads: a brown-skinned three-year-old with two pigtail puffs; a white, red-haired five-year-old with round glasses; and a long-haired seven-year-old with brown skin and a beloved stuffed alligator. The younger children’s vignettes mostly unfold in pared-down but cozy domestic settings, while an older child flexes their independence in a snowy adventure rendered in impressionistic swirls of white-flecked blues and pinks (a surprise party awaits back home). Though the pacing begins to lag midway through, this is a fitting, visually luxuriant tribute to one of the greatest days on the kid calendar. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Using radiant, translucent pastels, pencil, watercolor, and gouache to show celebrations in different seasons, Derby (Two Many Birds) centers three children throughout this book’s spreads. . . this is a fitting, visually luxuriant tribute to one of the greatest days on the kid calendar.
—Publishers Weekly

A delightful conversation starter on a topic of perennial interest to young children.
—Kirkus Reviews

Derby’s gleaming mixed-media illustrations follow three different kids celebrating in different families with different ways. . . audiences will also thrill to the sequence of glorious birthday cakes and an epic pile of presents (plus a birthday crown). . . a tender way to articulate why, beyond the loot and treats, birthdays feel special; youngsters will enjoy recognizing “that shivery feeling that belongs only to a birthday.”
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Ray’s lyrical text showcases everyone’s choices, no matter how they celebrate. Derby’s watercolor and pastel illustrations are gentle and warm, showing stars streaking across a beautiful indigo sky. . . lovely.
—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

10/01/2021

Gr 2–4—The title is a statement, implying that there is a "right" way to have a birthday. Just before the title page is a small green box, ready to be unwrapped. Will this present hold the answer? Three families of various skin tones mark their birthdays in different ways. There are scenes of children waking up at dawn, playing with family members, and opening presents. There are less literal scenes near the middle of the book, in which text and art are not in concord: words about embarrassing birthday pictures, but the scene is a field of flowers. In some, flowers are silhouettes of happy and sad memories. The poetic license is less engaging than scenes with a clearer focus, like a child being measured each year or building a snowman. By the end of the book, text and art are again in harmony. All the children blow out their birthday candles and make a wish. Ray's lyrical text showcases everyone's choices, no matter how they celebrate. Derby's watercolor and pastel illustrations are gentle and warm, showing stars streaking across a beautiful indigo sky. VERDICT For the holiday shelves, and a lovely addition to larger collections.—Chance Lee Joyner, Haverhill P.L., MA

School Library Journal

2021-07-27
Are there key ingredients that are part of any (American) child’s birthday?

Ray intimates that there are. Her narrative employs the second person, a choice that instantly draws the listener in: “…your birthday is to celebrate that you are here. It’s to tell you that you matter.” Derby’s compositions follow three characters throughout their special days. Two have brown skin—one with long, straight hair and the other with two Afro puffs. The third child is White with flaming red hair and glasses. Each carries a stuffed animal. The telling is sensitive to class and income differences, often using the conditional may or might, and while presents and singing are mentioned, intangibles and independent actions are mentioned as well: your first present is “…you get to wonder” (what will occur on this day), and you can always sing to yourself. Traditions and cake are often involved, but it’s also terrific that birthdays are portable; they go with you all day, whatever you do. Dynamic single- or double-page scenes depict snowy, windswept play; dabs of vibrant color suggest a field of flowers that, upon closer inspection, reveal bodies and faces, illustrating the idea that pictures will help you remember the occasion. The title concludes with three horizontal, parallel views, one for each child as they make wishes.

A delightful conversation starter on a topic of perennial interest to young children. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews