BOOP THE SNOOT

An invitation to “boop" the "snoots” of animals in this board book.

“How many of these snoots could a baby boop if a baby could boop snoots?” Quite a few! Booping a baby on the nose is an age-old game played between caregivers and little ones, and this book is an extension of that giggle-filled game. Anstee’s text invites readers to bop some friendly animals on the nose: a dog, cats, even a tortoise and a hare. When the text asks, “Can a baby boop this snoot?” the page features a large pointing hand highlighted by a circle of color, drawing attention to the call to action. The tongue-twister nature of the book keeps the pace bopping. Anstee’s illustrations feature solid-colored backgrounds peppered with flecks, each animal and person drawn with a dark outline and bright fill. The people included in the book range in skin tone; the caregiver-child pair depicted at the end are brown-skinned. Most of the children depicted oddly do not look like babies (shown walking, for example), even though the book speaks directly about them. Baby is a term of endearment, of course, and could apply to the bodiless arms on some pages, but it’s still a surprising choice given the book’s infant-appropriate content. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Playful and interactive.