Lila's excited to make friends at her new school, but when a boy makes fun of the color of her hair, skin, and eyes, constantly comparing her to a crow, Lila, whose brown skin is darker than all of her classmates', is filled with sadness. She sees a crow in her neighborhood, and at first, she resents it. But when she takes a closer look one day, she notices the beautiful gleam of its feathers, and when it's time to make a costume for the Halloween-like fall festival, she comes up with the perfect plan. Grimard's soft watercolor illustrations in warm autumn colors nicely set the scene and artfully communicate Lila's emotions. While there are no repercussions for the bully, this helps to emphasize Lila's good graces: she never retaliates against those who were mean to her. This is an empowering story about seeing the beauty in front of us, accepting the beauty inside us, and not being afraid to proudly proclaim our differences.

K-Gr 2-- Newcomer Lila can't wait to start school and make new friends. However, during the first recess, her dreams are crushed when the ringleader taunts her: "A crow! A crow! The new girl's hair is black like a crow!" She tries to hide her hair, but the next day she is mocked for her black skin and, subsequently, her black eyes. After weeks of misery, she falls down on her way home, and as she sobs, a crow lands near her. She sees how beautiful the bird actually is, and she follows it to a tree filled with crows. She is full of wonder, and when the flock of birds fly off, they leave Lila with piles of glossy feathers, with which she constructs a fantastic crow costume. She wears her costume to school in triumph, happy to be called a crow, and wins the friendship of her class. The mixed-media paintings are emotive and appealing, but on most spreads Lila's skin is hardly discernible as darker than that of her pale classmates, making it rather baffling when the bully yells, "The new girl's skin is black like a crow!!" Aside from that, there seem to be a variety of ethnicities represented in the classroom. Lila will surely garner sympathy and may inspire children to be kinder to others. VERDICT Possibly useful as a discussion starter, this title offers little in the way of practical solutions for those being bullied. An additional purchase for most libraries.- Anna Haase Krueger, Ramsey County Library, MN

When Nathan calls new girl Lila a crow because of her dark features, she's instantly disliked. Led by a friendly crow to its flock, Lila collects feathers to make a dramatic crow costume for the autumn festival, which earns her sudden acceptance in this somewhat unlikely story of otherness. Lila's inconsistently light skin contradicts the text; Grimard's emotive illustrations are otherwise striking.

New in town, Lila hopes to make friends at school but is instead taunted by her classmates. Led by a redheaded boy named Nathan, the children point and laugh at Lila, describing her hair, skin, and eyes as being -black like a crow- (in reality, her skin is light brown). In her first outing as an author, illustrator Grimard (Not My Girl) delivers a painful story of exclusion and bullying, tinged with magic. As the days pass, Lila covers her features with a scarf, sweater, and glasses while rejecting an actual crow that seems to be reaching out to her. Grimard-s windswept paintings emphasize Lila-s isolation as the story builds to a triumphant conclusion brought about when she sees a crow up close: -She-s surprised to see how beautiful its black feathers are, highlighted with purple.- After -hundreds of crows- descend and encircle the girl, she gathers their feathers to create a crow costume for an upcoming school festival, reclaiming her nickname and winning over her classmates. Though this turnaround comes a bit easily, Grimard-s story never sugarcoats the depths of Lila-s hurt. Ages 5-8. (Oct.)