Best buddies Blossom and Boo decide to explore the mysteries of the nighttime forest. Apperley’s amiable duo (Blossom and Boo: A Story About Best Friends, not reviewed) continue to wield an enchanting appeal. Readers will readily recognize favored pastimes of the preschool set: discovering shapes in cloud formations, dancing, and frolicking about with carefree abandon. Like all youngsters, the bunny and cub ponder what they are missing while they slumber. Saying goodnight to their diurnal pals, the two eagerly await the arrival of the moon, only to discover that the woods at night can be an alarming experience. Despite being spooked, they quickly determine the commonplace sources for the ominous sounds and sights. However, with the arrival of the sun comes the determination that for light-loving creatures such as themselves, nighttime is best spent snuggled up asleep. Apperley’s art imbues the tale with her own distinctive blend of whimsy. Pencil-and-watercolor illustrations beguile readers with a bevy of cuddlesome critters. Simply rendered, the full-bleed pictures have a child-like feel that is utterly appealing: chunky, rounded bees buzz past a bright field of daisies, while round little ducklings bob in the stream. A likable tale that gently encourages would-be night owls to roost for the evening. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-316-05312-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Megan Tingley/Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2002
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Today Carmelita visits her Abuela Rosa, but to get there she must walk. Down Ninth Avenue she strolls with her mother and dog. Colorful shops and congenial neighbors greet them along the way, and at each stop Carmelita says hello—in Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew and more. With a friendly “Jambo” for Joseph, a “Bonjour” at the bakery and an affectionate “Hey” for Max and Angel, the pig-tailed girl happily exercises her burgeoning multilingual skills. Her world is a vibrant community, where neighborliness, camaraderie and culture are celebrated. Isadora’s collaged artwork, reminiscent of Ezra Jack Keats, contains lovely edges and imperfections, which abet the feeling of an urban environment. Skillfully, she draws with her scissors, the cut-paper elements acting as her line work. Everything has a texture and surface, and with almost no solid colors, the city street is realized as a real, organic place. Readers will fall for the sociable Carmelita as they proudly learn a range of salutations, and the artist’s rich environment, packed with hidden details and charming animals, will delight readers with each return visit. Simply enchanting. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: April 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-399-25230-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2010
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A pleasing poem that celebrates babies around the world. Whether from a remote village or an urban dwelling, a tent or the snow, Fox notes that each “of these babies, / as everyone knows, / had ten little fingers / and ten little toes.” Repeated in each stanza, the verse establishes an easy rhythm. Oxenbury’s charming illustrations depict infants from a variety of ethnicities wearing clothing that invokes a sense of place. Her pencil drawings, with clean watercolor washes laid in, are sweetly similar to those in her early board books (Clap Hands, 1987, etc.). Each stanza introduces a new pair of babies, and the illustrations cleverly incorporate the children from the previous stanzas onto one page, allowing readers to count not only fingers and toes but also babies. The last stanza switches its focus from two children to one “sweet little child,” and reveals the narrator as that baby’s mother. Little readers will take to the repetition and counting, while parents will be moved by the last spread: a sweet depiction of mother and baby. (Picture book. 3-5)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-15-206057-2
Page Count: 34
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2008
Categories: CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S
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