The Squish by Breanna Carzoo (review)

Reviewed by: The Squish by Breanna Carzoo Natalie Berglind Carzoo, Breanna The Squish; written and illus. by Breanna Carzoo. HarperCollins, 2024 40p Trade ed. ISBN 9780063334939 19. 99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 3-6 yrs A bright-eyed Sandcastle stands proud after kids build them on the beach, but the beach is a rowdy place, and Sandcastle gets squished by an errant foot. Sandcastle is disheartened but not discouraged: "I've gotta pick myself up, dust myself off, and be on the lookout!" As Sandcastle takes a frisbee to the face, they rebuild themself taller and with more embellishments only to be dissolved by the rain. A forlorn Sandcastle decides to just stay a blob, but a receding wave reveals a fellow sandcastle who has just received their first squish. One award-winning pep talk later, the two sandcastles agree to "weather everything life throws at us together. " In the vein of Lou (BCCB 6/22) and Greenlight (BCCB 7/23), Carzoo channels a relevant lesson for kids through a geometric inanimate object with huge, disarmingly cute eyes. The beach setting, rendered with mixed media including, delightfully, actual sand, gives focus to Sandcastle's squishy problems, though a limited tan-and-blue color palette and expanses of empty space leave the compositions feeling static. The message about resilience is more labored than in Carzoo's previous picture books, but that may work better for younger kids learning what to do when life is decidedly kicking up sand. Copyright © 2024 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois