High Top: Sole Mates

High Top, an enthusiastic young anthropomorphic sneaker brimming with love for his fellow citizens of Shoe Town, is always looking for new ways to show his friends and neighbors how much he cares about them. He spends his days helping out other shoes through his various love languages, which include physical affection, like hugs, and acts of service, like helping a parent babysit. He even tries gift-giving. But none of these methods feels like quite enough to express how much he loves Shoe Town. When High Top’s plan to make an elaborate show of love to Shoe Town through a lit-up billboard sign goes awry, he is disappointed—but is then soon reassured of the reciprocated love and appreciation the other shoes hold for him. Lacey’s heartwarming text and vibrant illustrations, including the endpapers featuring creatively named shoe characters, bring to life a world of smiling, exuberant shoes filled with emotion and, most of all, love and kindness for one another.–Booklist

An anthropomorphic sneaker wants to show his friends how much he loves them.
Vivacious, outgoing High Top cares deeply about the other residents of Shoe Town; his love languages are physical affection and acts of service. But when he decides that it’s time for a grand gesture as big as his own personality, things don’t go according to plan. The giant “I Love Shoe Town” sign he makes draws enough electricity to plunge the town into a blackout. Dejected, High Top heads home to find his previous goodwill returned in the form of thank-you notes and various tokens from his friends. Even better, he soon realizes that his pals have repaired the sign, which now reads “We Love High Top.” The story is simple and straightforward, with spare text that’s ideal for emerging readers. The art is child-friendly; the shoes—among them ballet slippers, sandals, and boots—have expressive eyes and shoelace arms. Lacey weaves in sly humor—side characters have names such as Shoezanne and Vincent Van Toe. Stronger than the first installment, High Top: The Sneaker That Just Can’t Stop! (2023), this tale reads well as a stand-alone.
Sweet-natured and optimistic. (Picture book. 3-7)–Kirkus Reviews