Bright-eyed, neatly drawn little animals in human dress crowd three successive settings from morning to night in this low-key seek-and-find import originally published in Germany as three separate, stand-alone titles.
Each section opens with a pictorial cast page that introduces Dr. and Mrs. Bunny, their two little bunnies and about 50 different or recurring fellow residents—including Benny Badger or, as he’s repeatedly styled, “that pesky/sneaky/lazy/unruly Benny Badger.” Teckentrup provides three questions on each spread as invitations to initial engagements with the pictures. These range from “Oh no! Who is slipping on a banana peel?” or “Where is Henry Hound fishing now?” to repeated heads-ups that Benny can be caught in some misbehavior like lounging lazily on a bench or trying to steal a chicken. Viewers who keep looking will see plenty of other activity, though aside from the odd small fire or other minor mishap, the action runs to easily identifiable playtimes, farm chores, meals, sightseeing and other quotidian occupations. There’s plenty to reward nose-to-page viewing, but even Richard Scarry fans may find this a little dull. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4521-1700-3
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2014
Like marshmallow on top of caramel.
Little Bear loves everything about Christmas, but there’s one thing he loves even more.
The Bear household is busily getting ready for Christmas. Mommy Bear wraps and bakes; Daddy Bear brings home a humongous tree; Little Bear exults in it all. With each new Christmas tradition that’s introduced, from opening Christmas cards to receiving carolers, Little Bear sings a song that celebrates it. “I love ornaments, and garland, and lights on a string, / candy canes, stockings—and all of the things / that make Christmas perfect—oh, yes, I do! / But the thing that I love more than Christmas is—” But before Little Bear can complete his rhyme, each time he is interrupted by a new element of Christmas to celebrate. Since that terminal rhyme is always set up with one that ends with an “oo” sound, readers will not be surprised in the least when Mommy and Daddy interrupt him one last time with an emphatic “YOU!” It’s all so uber-idealized readers may find themselves gagging on the syrup—it even seems to get at Hattie: Daddy Bear’s smug “What an exceedingly talented family we are” has a whiff of irony to it. Warnes’ cartoon bears inhabit a cozy, middle-class home; while the carolers are clothed, the Bear family is not, but readers may notice a white marking on Mommy Bear’s chest where a string of pearls might rest.
Like marshmallow on top of caramel. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68010-208-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2020
Delightful and engaging.
Preschoolers can follow a little brown mouse on its traveling adventures in this engaging color concept book.
As the book starts, a little mouse can be seen packing up her equally itty-bitty suitcase. Rhyming text with a wonderful read-aloud rhythm introduces readers to the little mouse’s street: “Red house / Blue house / Green house / Tree house! / See the tiny mouse / in her little brown house?” Clean-lined, colorful illustrations in Gómez’s signature style lead readers along: into a flower-filled garden; on a ride on a red city bus; in a potted windowsill plant attended by a child; on the curb where a group of people wait to cross a street; in an underwater scene with “one gigantic whale!”; and on a jolly ride that employs a string of vehicles. The little mouse is not mentioned again, making it easy for readers to forget it as they get caught up in the myriad delightful details of each illustration. No problem there. The book ends with “and did you spot that mouse?” This should send children back to the beginning, this time in earnest search of the little mouse and her itty-bitty suitcase. Should children need further enticement to read the book again, travel patches on the endpapers invite readers to match them to the relevant part in the story. The people depicted are diverse both racially as well as in physical ability.
Delightful and engaging. (Picture book. 3-5)Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-525-55381-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Dial Books
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2019
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