No matter what your favorite color, this rainbow ode is sure to brighten your day.
A lively rumination on the merits of different colors—and can one ever pick a favorite?
In this exuberant follow-up to his outstanding You Are Light (2019), Becker returns to the glorious medium of translucent vinyl inserts that allow colors to shine and meld. Based on a discussion about favorite colors, this board book is less poetically sweeping than its predecessor. Yet the topic of what color reigns supreme is a perennial favorite among the preschool crowd, making this nicely accessible for young audiences. Starting with the premise that “my favorite color is yellow,” a white page shows 25 differently tinted sunny yellow squares. On the following page, the narrator muses that it’s really “yellow, like the sun in a clear blue sky” and various blues are sprinkled about the gold and cream swatches. The narrator simply must then amend their favorite color to blue. As the book discusses the best parts of all the rainbow colors, there’s an ultimate conclusion. Choosing a favorite color? “Impossible!” Lyrical musings such as “ripples on an emerald sea” or the black-backgrounded “purple hues of night” create vivid verbal images that bring the colorful squares to life. The sturdy translucent inserts work together magnificently, layering to create an unexpected richness of color.
No matter what your favorite color, this rainbow ode is sure to brighten your day. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5362-1474-1
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Candlewick Studio
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2020
Who knew that turning the pages could be the best part of a book?
The concept of this picture book is simple enough: 10 birds topple, slip, and dive their way off the titular twig until there is one left. The text itself echoes familiar singsong-y children’s rhymes like “Five Little Pumpkins.” While it mostly succeeds, there are some awkward spots: “5 on a twig, there used to be more… / SNAP! Don’t say a word, now there are four.” (On each page the number is both spelled out and represented as a numeral). The real scene stealer, however, is the book’s interplay between Cole’s illustrations and the physical pages themselves. In much the same way Eric Carle utilizes the pages in The Very Hungry Caterpillar to show the little critter eating its way through the week, Cole uses pages of increasing width to show how the twig grows shorter as each bird falls and marches off purposefully with the others, all headed toward verso with pieces of twig in their beaks. Stylistically, the book is captivating. The very colorful, egg-shaped birds appear on a single, thin black line on a stark white background. This backdrop stands in powerful contrast to the book’s final two pages, which are set against black negative space, a theme echoed in the book’s feather-print endpapers. The heavy, thick pages make it easy for little hands to participate. The text takes a back seat to the playful and compelling design, which is sure to delight readers.
Who knew that turning the pages could be the best part of a book? (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-72821-593-8
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
Engaging, appealing, and validating—social-emotional learning done right.
The adorable anthropomorphic cloud introduced in Ploof (2023) returns for more interactive fun.
Ploof is ready to create a rainbow but needs some help. An unseen narrator asks readers to lend a hand: “Let’s begin with a rainbow shape. Do you see any?” “Can you try blocking the wind?” Children become an integral part of moving the plot forward as they “mix” colors for the rainbow and provide Ploof with words of encouragement. The rainbow doesn’t turn out how Ploof wanted it to, so readers give the cloud a moment to cry (rain falls from Ploof) and take deep breaths. The book ends on a positive note with an invitation to play again. Ploof is a sweet and approachable little cloud, with large eyes and a simple smile. Set against a pale blue background, the puffy cumulus paints the sky with swaths of pastel rainbow colors. Not only are the questions and physical interactions a nice fit for the toddler and preschool crowd, but the story also offers sound guidance on coping with uncomfortable feelings. It’s an ideal option for caregivers to read aloud one-on-one and for teachers to share with a group of students.
Engaging, appealing, and validating—social-emotional learning done right. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: Oct. 29, 2024
ISBN: 9781774881941
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Tundra Books
Review Posted Online: July 4, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2024
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