Another animated introduction to colors from the creators of What Makes a Rainbow? (2000), using the same “Magic Ribbon” technique.
Here it’s a smiling snake that grows, thanks to strips of brightly spotted yellow ribbon that are cleverly interwoven back and forth through the stiff cardboard pages. Each turn pulls out a new length, with a new color: “He grew a little more… / He had green spots galore! / Then he grew again… // His spots were orange: Look at them!” Though the color scheme breaks down with the “orange” spots—which are actually peach-pink—the ribbons really do seem to grow as if by magic, and the succession of very simply painted outdoorsy settings in various seasons add sunny overtones to the cheery, rhymed text. In the end, “All his spots got kind of blended. / Yellow Snake thought, ‘This is splendid!’ ” Young children will agree—particularly as the ribbons (somehow) retract into their slots at the end, making repeat readings as intriguing as initial ones.
Sturdy, ingenious—and winning, despite the small color misstep. (Toy book/board book. 3-5)
