by Elizabeth Spurr ; illustrated by Manelle Oliphant ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2016
A gentle outing for children who are ready for stories of everyday life rather than just objects to name.
A brief rhyming board book for toddlers.
Spurr's earlier board books (In the Garden and At the Beach, both 2012; In the Woods, 2013) featured an adventuresome little boy. Her new slice-of-life story stars an equally joyful little girl who takes pleasure in flying a new kite while not venturing far off the walkway. Oliphant's expressive and light-filled watercolors clearly depict the child's emotions—eager excitement on the way to the park, delight at the kite's flight in the wind, shock when the kite breaks free, dejection, and finally relief and amazement. The rhymes work, though uneven syllable counts in some stanzas interrupt the smooth flow of the verse. The illustrations depict the child with her mass of windblown curls, brown skin, and pronounced facial features as African-American. Her guardian (presumably her mother) is also brown-skinned. It is refreshing to see an African-American family settled comfortably in a suburban setting with single-family homes and a park where the family dog does not need to be leashed.
A gentle outing for children who are ready for stories of everyday life rather than just objects to name. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 1, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-56145-854-7
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2016
Share your opinion of this book
More by Elizabeth Spurr
BOOK REVIEW
by Elizabeth Spurr ; illustrated by Manelle Oliphant
BOOK REVIEW
by Elizabeth Spurr ; illustrated by Manelle Oliphant
BOOK REVIEW
by Elizabeth Spurr ; illustrated by Manelle Oliphant
by Susan Stockdale & illustrated by Susan Stockdale ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 1, 2011
Over rhyming captions that only occasionally exceed three or four words, Stockdale presents painted portraits of 21 wild birds. Portrayed in a flat graphic style and, mostly, in frozen motion against simplified natural settings, each—from great horned owl and blue-footed booby to Adelie penguin, ostrich and broad-tailed hummingbird—is large and easily visible on the page, rendered with clear hues and sharp color borders likely to draw and hold the attention even of unfledged young viewers. The images are often mesmerizing in their abstraction, inviting readers to pause and admire. A flock of red-billed oxpeckers is arrayed on a slope that readers may take a few beats to recognize as the neck of a giraffe; the white-tailed ptarmigans look at first like just a few snowdrifts. The author links her gallery together with the concluding note that “Dull or dazzling colors, / long or little legs. / All of them have feathers, / and all are hatched from eggs,” then identifies each bird in a closing key with one or two sentences of descriptive commentary. Broader in geographical range and even simpler in design, this makes a natural follow-up to Lois Ehlert’s Feathers for Lunch (1990) as a primary introduction to our avian cousins. (bibliography) (Informational picture book. 2-4)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-56145-560-7
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Peachtree
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2011
Share your opinion of this book
More by Susan Stockdale
BOOK REVIEW
by Susan Stockdale ; illustrated by Susan Stockdale
BOOK REVIEW
by Susan Stockdale ; illustrated by Susan Stockdale
BOOK REVIEW
by Susan Stockdale ; illustrated by Susan Stockdale
by Karen Saunders & illustrated by Dubravka Kolanovic ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 10, 2011
Saunders makes her debut with a tender story about how Papa Badger helps Baby Badger get over his fear of the dark. As the sun goes down, the young one becomes afraid. Papa tells him, “The night is wonderful. Let me show you.” When Baby worries about getting lost in the dark, Papa points out that the bright North Star “will always guide you back home.” And so the conversation continues, with Papa pointing out the magical qualities of the night while Baby begins to feel more safe and full of wonder. Kolanovic’s palette of pastels in a soft spectrum of blues and greens, accented with luminous yellow for the moon and stars, has a soft, cozy feel that further creates a sense of calm security. When the palette gradually changes to pinks and yellows, the sun has come up, signaling bedtime for the nocturnal badgers. (Logically minded children will wonder how it is that an animal that typically stays up all night comes to be afraid of the dark.) This story, perhaps too quiet for some, succeeds in showcasing a charming father/child relationship and is a good choice for a cuddly storytime with a preschooler struggling with nighttime fears. (Picture book. 2-4)
Pub Date: May 10, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-60684-172-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Egmont USA
Review Posted Online: April 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2011
Share your opinion of this book
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.