Next book

MAISY'S WORLD OF ANIMALS

A MAISY FIRST SCIENCE BOOK

From the Maisy First Science Book series

For armchair travelers newly or not yet out of diapers, Maisy again serves as a safe and comfortably familiar companion with...

Maisy meets smiling animals in habitats from jungle to ocean in her newest First Science Book.

The tour starts in the Arctic, where, with a pull of a large tab, a polar bear yanks a herring out of the water (to the relief, no doubt, of the several onlooking seals), and ends in the Antarctic, where penguins dive for food and lift wings to reveal a chick and an egg. In between, Maisy watches or greets wildlife found in six other world climes. Except for an ostrich on the savanna and an octopus and other denizens of the ocean, the animals on each spread save the last are identified in visual sidebar keys. Throughout, the accompanying narrative offers morsels of background information like “Maisy is very hot in the savanna,” or “Look at all the sand in the desert.” Aside from a double gatefold in the middle that opens to reveal a blue whale, the typically inviting but fragile interactive effects are driven by a pull tab on each recto. They cause meerkats to pop up, a lion to slide out of the tall grass, Maisy and a monkey to swing past one another in the jungle, and other gratifying events.

For armchair travelers newly or not yet out of diapers, Maisy again serves as a safe and comfortably familiar companion with whom to explore the wider world. (Pop-up informational picture book. 18 mos.-3)

Pub Date: April 1, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-7636-6989-8

Page Count: 16

Publisher: Candlewick

Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014

Next book

THE ITSY BITSY BUNNY

Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead.

An Easter-themed board-book parody of the traditional nursery rhyme.

Unfortunately, this effort is just as sugary and uninspired as The Itsy Bitsy Snowman, offered by the same pair in 2015. A cheerful white bunny hops through a pastel world to distribute candy and treats for Easter but spills his baskets. A hedgehog, fox, mouse, and various birds come to the bunny’s rescue, retrieving the candy, helping to devise a distribution plan, and hiding the eggs. Then magically, they all fly off in a hot air balloon as the little animals in the village emerge to find the treats. Without any apparent purpose, the type changes color to highlight some words. For very young children every word is new, so highlighting “tiny tail” or “friends” makes no sense. Although the text is meant to be sung, the words don't quite fit the rhythm of the original song. Moreover, there are not clear motions to accompany the text; without the fingerplay movements, this book has none of the satisfying verve of the traditional version.

Leave the hopping to Peter Cottontail and sing the original song instead. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-4814-5621-0

Page Count: 16

Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2016

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016

Next book

SMILE, POUT-POUT FISH

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to.

This simplified version of Diesen and Hanna’s The Pout-Pout Fish (2008) is appropriate for babies and toddlers.

Brief, rhyming text tells the story of a sullen fish cheered up with a kiss. A little pink sea creature pokes his head out of a hole in the sea bottom to give the gloomy fish some advice: “Smile, Mr. Fish! / You look so down // With your glum-glum face / And your pout-pout frown.” He explains that there’s no reason to be worried, scared, sad or mad and concludes: “How about a smooch? / And a cheer-up wish? // Now you look happy: / What a smile, Mr. Fish!” Simple and sweet, this tale offers the lesson that sometimes, all that’s needed for a turnaround in mood is some cheer and encouragement to change our perspective. The clean, uncluttered illustrations are kept simple, except for the pout-pout fish’s features, which are delightfully expressive. Little ones will easily recognize and likely try to copy the sad, scared and angry looks that cross the fish’s face.

An upbeat early book on feelings with a simple storyline that little ones will respond to. (Board book. 1-3)

Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-374-37084-8

Page Count: 12

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014

Close Quickview