Ten rubber ducks are packed in a box and tied to a boat. A storm blows up on their trip across the ocean, spills them out, and they drift in different directions. One encounters a dolphin, another meets up with a seal, and so on. The tenth rubber toy runs into a family of wild ducks and they all nestle down under a friendly moon. Laura Ingalls Wilder Award–recipient and perennial favorite Carle revisits the counting-book format with his unmistakable blocky, painted collages. All of his well-known components are present: a list of animals—many of them recognizable from earlier works—repeated words and phrases, bright friendly art on lots of white background, and a noisemaker at the end. He offers his take on the 1992 news story that inspired Eve Bunting and David Wisniewski to create Ducky (1997). While not Carle’s best work, it still has those saturated colors that have such appeal. Audiences of one or many will enjoy it, especially if they get to press the duck and make him squeak. (Picture book. 2-5)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2005
ISBN: 0-06-074075-2
Page Count: 36
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2005
Categories: CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A picture book that capers with joy in the buggy natural world.
With minimal words cajoled into loose rhyme—they have just enough structure to hold their own within the sprawling illustrations—each page of this ebullient book introduces a different bug’s proclivity (“Some bugs STING. Some bugs BITE”) while a small ladybug saunters past, serving as a cohesive visual element. (“Bug” is loosely construed to include many insects and arachnids.) The mixed-media illustrations play with form and white space, while the artistic-license black-and-white eyes of all the bugs cleverly draw readers’ gazes toward them, encouraging close examination. The second-to-final spread—a long shot—reveals to readers that the earlier illustrations in the book are actually close-ups of a single backyard. This visual surprise encourages the friendly accessibility of readers’ own backyards as habitats to explore. Only one jarring note disturbs the joyful tone of this book, and that is the indirect permission it gives to readers to capture these critters. As there is no textual exhortation to take care and let the creatures go after examining them, adults will need to underscore this independently.
Deceptively simple, with innovative illustrations and a catchy narrative, this book adeptly supplies information, a sense of accessibility, close looking and joie de vivre. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: March 4, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4424-5880-2
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Dec. 24, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
Categories: CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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This straightforward, graphic book was published in Japan in 1978. Whether the US is ready for its unblinking look at a subject that naturally fascinates children and is basic to toilet training remains to be seen. ``An elephant makes a big poop. A mouse makes a tiny poop,'' begins Gomi, depicting animals, birds, fish, and humans in boldly stylized forms silhouetted against origami-paper colors; their feces are appropriately shaped blobs. There's a lot to know: different shapes, colors, and smells (not described), while some animals stop but ``Others do it on the move.'' A child heading for ``a special place'' introduces a nonjudgmental comparison of adults and tots on toilets and potties with a baby on a diaper. The book concludes with a seven- animal lineup viewed fore (``All living things eat, so...'') and aft (``Everyone poops''). Candid and sensible. (Picture book. 2- 5)
Pub Date: March 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-916291-45-6
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Kane Miller
Review Posted Online: May 20, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1993
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SEEN & HEARD
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