As warm and fuzzy as a loving bear family can be.
More than anything else, Little Bear likes playing with Mommy and Daddy.
As Little Bear stands among his toys sporting a cute red-and-white–striped shirt, readers learn that after playing with his toys, “he looks forward to playing with Mommy and Daddy… / …and Mommy and Daddy can’t wait to play with him!” And play they do. Daddy tickles his tummy, “picks him up high and lands him like a plane,” and comforts him when he’s upset. Mommy rubs his nose with hers. And Mommy and Daddy pass Little Bear between them like a ball. The action is helped along by appropriately placed, sturdy die cuts, gatefolds, and flaps. A half-page flap is used to show Little Bear going back and forth between Mommy and Daddy; a gatefold opens up to show that Daddy has just landed a joyful Little Bear. The members of Tharlet’s anthropomorphic bear family have warm, expressive faces, mostly white backgrounds keeping the focus centered on the characters. In this sweet book even Little Bear’s toys sport smiles. Young readers will easily recognize the simple interactions from their own families’ expressions of affection, and they’ll enjoy poking little fingers through the round die cuts.
As warm and fuzzy as a loving bear family can be. (Board book. 1-2)Pub Date: March 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-988-8341-97-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: minedition
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2020
Sounds like a winner, though the animal chorus is a bit thin.
Bunny hunts for carrots but finds noisy animal babies behind each flap instead.
“Bunny hops out of her burrow, / she’s looking for carrots to eat. / Can you help this fluffy friend / find a tasty treat?” The baaas, quacks, chirps, and horsey clip-clopping—activated by light as each of the first four big, shaped flaps lift—are gratifyingly loud and clear. All of the animal figures in the bright color pictures are intensely cute plush toys inserted into simple outdoorsy mixes of painted greenery and photographed flowers and bugs. Even the heaped carrots hiding behind the fifth and final flap are soft and fuzzy, though you’d never know that from the sound as Bunny hops on them (with a really loud boing) and chows down with crunches so comically amplified and rapid that caregivers too will laugh (at least the first dozen or so go-rounds). As no pressing of buttons is required to cue the sound effects, Bunny’s miniodyssey is suited to sharing at a slight remove with groups of toddlers as well as one-on-one. Batteries are replaceable, and there is (thankfully) an on-off switch on the rear cover.
Sounds like a winner, though the animal chorus is a bit thin. (Novelty board book. 18 mos.-2)Pub Date: Jan. 8, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4654-7853-5
Page Count: 12
Publisher: DK Publishing
Review Posted Online: Dec. 15, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2019
A bright and friendly but no more than serviceable board book.
Little readers play peekaboo with animals.
Carle’s iconic illustrations form the centerpiece of this simple lift-the-flap board book. Each double-page spread features an animal obscured by a flap (a solid block of trademark, textured Carle color) on one side and a four-line abcb stanza describing the animal on the opposite page. Readers are given hints about the hidden creature before they play peekaboo and lift the flap to reveal a monkey, horse, turtle, and more. “I’m a big cat, / but I don’t purr. / I’ve got black stripes / and bright orange fur.” Although most of the facts offered are scientifically valid, the ambiguously worded modifier for the monkey’s clue—“With my long tail, / I swing in the trees”—risks imparting the misinformation that monkeys suspend themselves from their tails. Carle’s illustrations are as recognizable to little readers as the characters on Sesame Street or Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, and the familiarity breeds appreciation. There’s nothing truly special or distinctive regarding the mechanics of this particular title, but the familiar look acts as a comfort food–esque motivation to get little ones’ attention.
A bright and friendly but no more than serviceable board book. (Board book. 1-2)Pub Date: June 6, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5344-0105-1
Page Count: 18
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
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