Good manners travel well in this board book for preschool linguists.
A brief, age-appropriate introduction to eight common world languages for toddler travelers.
Following the formula established in How Hippo Says Hello and How Gator Says Good-Bye (both 2014), Samoun tackles manners with a nondidactic and international flair. Without scolding, this book and its companion title, How Tiger Says Thank You, demonstrate courtesies common to cultures all over the world. The same eight countries (France, Russia, Egypt, India, China, Japan, Argentina, and the United States) are included in each book. A phonetic pronunciation guide is provided below each word, though sometimes the transliteration is as puzzling as the actual spelling. (Readers may find themselves wondering how to pronounce “ZHA” or “TCH.”) Smiling cartoon animals show the influence of the illustrator's prior experience as a designer for Carter's baby clothes and International Greetings. Background illustrations in muted hues hint at the flavor of each country while keeping readers focused on the words in speech bubbles. Tourist sites are not identified, though well-traveled adults may recognize many of the locations (the Hermitage in Russia, Mount Fuji in Japan, the pyramids in Egypt). The travel map on the last spread is identical in each book; perhaps the animals are traveling together.
Good manners travel well in this board book for preschool linguists. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: May 5, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4549-1496-9
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: April 28, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...
A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.
As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.
Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: April 1, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing
Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery.
A troop of cats traverse a spooky landscape as they make their way to a party hosted by ghosts.
Each double-page spread shows the felines’ encounters with the likes of an owl, jack-o’-lanterns or a bat. One or two of these creepy meetings may be too abstract for the youngest readers, as the cats hear eerie noises with no discernible source on the page. The text, which consists of one rhyming couplet per scene, mostly scans despite a couple of wobbles: “Five black cats get a bit of a scare / As the flip-flapping wings of a bat fill the air.” The sleek, slightly retro art, likely created using a computer, depicts the cats cavorting at night through a shadowy cityscape, the countryside and a haunted house; they may scare some toddlers and delight others. A brighter color palette would have given the project a friendlier, more universal appeal. Luckily, the well-lit, final party scene provides a playful conclusion.
For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-58925-611-8
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Sept. 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
