K-Gr 3—A bilingual English and French picture book featuring the story of a young girl named Claire. Claire has a facial difference, but she doesn't let this get her down. She challenges herself through boxing with her instructor Vivian, who has a different sight ability. Claire patiently works through various exercises and moves in order to earn her boxing name. She is supported by her mother, Vivian, and the owner of the women's boxing club, Savoy. Each page features multiple real-life photographs of Claire in action. The text is located underneath the pictures and is written in both English and French. Claire's story touches upon important aspects of childhood: determination, motivation, overcoming challenges, and earning your keep. These universal themes will appeal to readers of all ages—and Claire and Vivian's differences will be excellent conversation starters with children about embracing all abilities and surmounting stereotypes. The quality of the book is unfortunately hindered by an imprecise French translation, grammar mistakes in French, and inconsistent formatting.
VERDICT This book possesses a strong narrative, but it falls short as a bilingual tool to support children in their acquisition of French or English.
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