Nonpedantic, age-appropriate, interactive approaches to common adult-child interactions make for a winner.
Pull-tabs easily slide to change the image on each page, providing the excitement in this gentle introduction to table manners.
Only the front-cover tab is notched, but the tabs are all in the same position so little ones quickly learn the process. On the front the picture changes from one of Little Kangaroo (who looks like a green bunny) playing while Mommy carries the plates to the table to another of both eating happily together. Each verso page introduces the situation with an exchange of dialogue: “Time to eat, Little Bear!” says his mother; “Oh, mushy food is fun to play with!” he exclaims. On the following pages Little Crocodile feeds himself, Little Kangaroo tries broccoli, Little Monkey sits at the table to eat pasta and fruit salad, Little Bear is rewarded with cake when he stops throwing food and waits patiently, and Daddy Cat uses the airplane “coming in for a landing” trick to feed rice to Little Cat. On the final spread, (without a tab) the child animals use their bibs to wipe their hands. The animals’ simple faces are expressive and the changes in their childlike emotions obvious. Brothers and Sisters, published simultaneously, uses the same animal families to suggest ways to resolve familiar sibling conflicts.
Nonpedantic, age-appropriate, interactive approaches to common adult-child interactions make for a winner. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 7, 2020
ISBN: 978-2-40801-594-7
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Twirl/Chronicle
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday.
Animal parents declare their love for their offspring in alphabetical order.
Each page displays an enormous capital letter, one line of verse with the keyword capitalized, and a loving nonhuman parent gazing adoringly at their baby. “A is for Always. I always love you more. / B is for Butterfly kisses. It’s you that I adore.” While not named or labelled as such, the A is also for an alligator and its hatchling and B is for a butterfly and a butterfly child (not a caterpillar—biology is not the aim of this title) interacting in some way with the said letter. For E there are an elephant and a calf; U features a unicorn and foal; and X, keyed to the last letter of the animal’s name, corresponds to a fox and three pups. The final double-page spread shows all the featured creatures and their babies as the last line declares: “Baby, I love you from A to Z!” The verse is standard fare and appropriately sentimental. The art is cartoony-cute and populated by suitably loving critters on solid backgrounds. Hearts accent each scene, but the theme of the project is never in any doubt.
Perfect for Valentine’s Day, but the syrupy sweetness will cloy after the holiday. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-7282-2095-6
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Guess how much you’ll be reading this.
Parent and child share a day of small adventures and cozy snuggles.
That the two happen to be tortoises is totally beside the point. Die-cut holes and shaped edges turn nearly every page flip into a surprise. Following a parental “Good morning, Baby” to greet the youngling’s “Wake up, wake up, I want to play… / The sun is up, it’s a brand new day!” the two reptiles ramble off to munch on leaves, weather a sudden rain shower, discover a flock of butterflies, climb a hill, watch the moon rise, and, at last, weary little one perched on top, settle down to snooze again. The paper engineering is ingenious. Turning a seemingly arbitrarily shaped page with a special window framing a pink butterfly fills the spread with many jewel-toned insects; even though the tortoises never change position, the scene is completely transformed. Hegarty’s rhymed narrative features lots of tender sentiments—“Wherever you are, wherever you go, / Baby, I’ll always love you so”—while steering clear of any gender references. In Elliott’s peaceful, grassy settings the wanderers’ small smiles and shared glances likewise create a sense of loving intimacy. This is likely to become a victim of its own appeal, being as the paper stock is rather too flimsy to survive much contact with toddler hands. Still, a clear winner for sharing with audiences of one or dozens.
Guess how much you’ll be reading this. (Novelty. 18 mos.-3)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-3509-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Sept. 23, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2021
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