Cleverly shows mirroring in action, though the manipulation required may make sharing difficult.
A mother and child interact in familiar ways in Raschka’s latest, which uses unique formatting to stand out from the crowd.
Mama and baby face each other across the gutter on the first spread, and then the pages’ orientations change. Mama is still on verso, baby on recto, but now they are sideways if the book is traditionally oriented. To see each right side up, readers will need to turn the book first 90 degrees clockwise to see the adult right way up and then a full 180 degrees to likewise see the child. The design is clearly meant to emphasize the mirroring that occurs between parent and child as they interact: smiles; clapping; hiding behind hands and then “Peek-a-boo!”; “Pat-a-cake.” (Even the text is hand-lettered sideways.) One interaction near the ending may be too on-the-nose: On the mom’s side, musical notes appear and her eyes slide sideways. The next three spreads show baby alone, expression modulating from pouty questioning (“Mama?”) to surprise to an open-mouthed wail that brings Mama back. The baby’s “up up” appears before the book returns to a traditionally oriented spread of the two cuddling. Raschka’s watercolors are very simple, showing each from midchest up. Mama has dark hair and slightly darker skin than blond Baby’s fair skin and light hair; both have pinkish spots on their cheeks and large, pouty lips.
Cleverly shows mirroring in action, though the manipulation required may make sharing difficult. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9060-1
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: March 14, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2020
Babies can do lots of things, as these winsome tots demonstrate in a catchy, rhythmic ode to the activities—and charm—of the very young. Ormerod’s round-faced youngsters vary in age from infants to toddlers and are thoroughly irresistible. Simply portrayed in soft pastel hues with just enough detail, these boys and girls frolic and wiggle, play and observe, stretch and cuddle throughout the pages. There are only children, brothers and sisters and even a set of twins, all from a variety of racial backgrounds. The rhyming couplets are just right for encouraging even very young children to listen for variations in the sounds of words: "This itsy-bitsy baby twiddles her toes. / That itsy-bitsy baby wrinkles up his nose." As the energetic text bounces along, the youngest listeners will delight in recognizing their own behaviors, while slightly older siblings-to-be will be encouraged by what they can anticipate as baby grows. Full of warmth and fun, appealing visuals and gentle humor, this is a marvelous book to read while gently bouncing a baby or young child on your knee. (Picture book. 2-4)
Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-1-921541-36-0
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Little Hare/Trafalgar
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2010
A day’s play in the mud and sand leaves Dini covered in splotches from sneakers to cowboy hat. Into the tub he hops, but,...
A delicious bit of bathtime flummery, delivered by a dirty little dino and his oddly inattentive mother.
A day’s play in the mud and sand leaves Dini covered in splotches from sneakers to cowboy hat. Into the tub he hops, but, “Silly Dini Dinosaur! / Don’t you know? / You have to take your SHOES off… / you go!” Following a repeat of this pattern for Dini’s pants, shirt and hat, Mama finishes off by scrubbing the parts he’s missed, and then it’s off to snoozeland for both. Beaumont’s buoyant, bouncy verse practically reads itself aloud, and it will not take long before young listeners fling themselves into the performance, chiming in with the "scrub-a-dub-dub!" refrain. Early-literacy skills are boosted by subtle textual cues that place the key word not only in all caps but in a color that matches the article of clothing in question. Roode complements the text with big, simple pictures filled with smiles (Dini's accessorized by one tiny fang) and sudsy bubbles.Pub Date: March 1, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-06-207299-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2011
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