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Synopsis
When Master Kim announces JoJo is ready to take the test for her yellow belt, butterflies start fluttering in her stomach. JoJo loves Tae Kwon Do, but can she really do a perfect flying side kick and break a board in two? Her family and friends offer all sorts of advice: "Do a little shuffle to chase the jitters away," says Grandaddy. "Yell 'KIAH!' at the top of your lungs," P.J. advises. "Why don't you visualize your technique?" Mom suggests.
But how can JoJo ever hope to succeed when she's still afraid of the creepy bandit tree outside her bedroom window? JoJo needs to find a way to turn her fears into success, and she soon realizes there's only one person who can help her do that -- herself.
Publishers Weekly
JoJo, a Tae Kwon Do white belt student, must break a board with a flying side kick in order to earn her yellow belt. She adds her worry about the test to her ever-present fear of the tree that looms ``like a creepy bandit'' in her front yard, but confides her nervousness to Granddaddy, her friend P.J. and her mother. All three offer advice drawn from their own experiences (``Visualize your technique.... That's what I do before a tennis match,'' says Mom). JoJo utilizes their suggestions as well as her own resources: visualizing the board as the creepy tree, she leaps into the air and smashes it. Energetic scratchboard and oil illustrations swirl with movement in a vivid palette of deep blues, greens and white. Pinkney renders the tree as reasonably ominous; accordingly, the late addition of a spooky face and hands to illustrate JoJo's terror is somewhat over the top. As in Pinkney's Max Found Two Sticks, the action plays out within a compressed time span, concentrating the tension. While the prose is not as taut this time, the author/artist again gets effortlessly into the mind of his protagonist. Ages 5-8. (Sept.)