Children's ✦ Penny’s Take
Counting Kindness
Hollis Kurman · 2020
71/100
👍 Worth It
A beautifully illustrated 2020 picture book by Hollis Kurman that pairs a counting primer with a refugee welcome story, endorsed by Amnesty International and praised by Kirkus as luminous and hopeful. Thoughtful critics note that the refugee family is positioned as recipients of kindness rather than active contributors, which is a real limitation in how it models the relationship. Strong for social justice classrooms; families wanting a more reciprocal portrayal should browse the notes before buying.
✦ Penny’s Take — this is The Review Group’s own editorial assessment. Penny’s analytical review line researched this book from real sources and scored it across the lenses shown below. It’s an honest first-party read — not a page-by-page personal one. The gold ✓ Penny Tested mark is reserved for books Penny reads cover to cover herself.
⚠ Parent note — our reviewers flagged: politically charged immigration theme · refugee family lacks agency in narrative · may oversimplify trauma with kindness narrative. We still scored it 71; these are context for your family, not an automatic skip.
📚 Buy the book ↗📱 Read on Kindle ↗🎧 Listen on Audible ↗ affiliate links · support the site, never the verdict
As an Amazon Associate and Audible affiliate, Penny earns from qualifying purchases. This never affects the verdict — see our affiliate disclosure.
Show the math
Verdict receipt0–100
Faith & family safety73
Substance / usefulness71
Craft & writing75
Originality59
Evidence & accuracy77
Hype vs delivers75
Age-fit77
👁 Human-eye gut-check71
Penny’s verdict71
Cross-pollinate