KICKS IN THE SKY

Backed by snazzy, scratchy electronica, author-illustrator C.G. Esperanza raps an energetic ode to sneakers suspended from telephone wires. "Red kicks, green kicks, yellow kicks, blue./How'd they get up there? Only birds knew." Esperanza's execution of this refrain is so catchy that listeners will be chanting it with him by the end of this four-minute track. The sonic experience is immersive enough that kids may need to listen to it multiple times to follow the story: When pigeons disturbed by passing motorcycles cause the sneakers to fall to the ground, neighborhood kids put them on and perform ever more amazing athletic feats--that end with tossing the sneakers back up. Whether experienced while looking at the print book's illustrations or by itself, this audiobook rocks. V.S. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2023]