Emphasizing collaboration and creativity, this lovely little board book is a wonderful wintertime selection for toddlers and...
A group of friends turns a snowball disaster into some spontaneous fun.
A sweet-looking little mouse with a red-and-white–striped scarf stands alone in a gently sloping wintry landscape with only a snowball formed by a small die-cut circle for company. The text reads, simply, “A snowball.” A cat carrying a backpack and cane soon arrives to help make it bigger. Next, a pig in a tuxedo and top hat is recruited to help push it. The three push the now-giant die-cut snowball over the top of a hill and right onto a little rabbit enjoying a carrot. Soon, everyone is plunging down the hill as the snowball gains momentum until it all comes to a screeching halt with a giant “SPLAT!” “Now what?” reads the text as the animal friends brush themselves off and stare at a big pile of snow littered with objects, including a scarf, hat, carrot, cane, and backpack. Inspired, the friends use the snow and the objects they all lost in the fall to fashion a snowman. The simple, clever plot is conveyed through sparse text, with the force of the story coming from the charming illustrations and the growing die-cut circle representing the snowball.
Emphasizing collaboration and creativity, this lovely little board book is a wonderful wintertime selection for toddlers and preschoolers. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-988-8240-42-5
Page Count: 16
Publisher: minedition
Review Posted Online: Oct. 13, 2015
Sweet—but more for adults than children.
A doting pair of adult bears follows a baby bear through a busy day.
These fully engaged caregivers are clearly awed by the little cub, starting with “You’re the morning sunshine” and ending with “you sleep so peacefully / beneath the twinkling stars.” In between, the baby bear paints a picture, sings with one adult, tickles with the other, drinks cocoa, takes a walk and flies a kite, rides a bike, and is playfully swung in the air before a bath. Much of the action is communicated only by the pictures. The tender rhyming verses focus on the wonder of familial love. Every other stanza ends with the refrain: “This world of ours is full of love / when you are here with me.” Curiously, although this cub has two present, caregiving adults, the narrative, presumably addressed to the child, uses the first-person singular. The baby bear is presented as gender-neutral, first in orange-and-green polka-dot pajamas and then in blue jeans with a white shirt graced with yellow ducks. Although neither adult bear is gendered in the text, the illustrations use stereotypical cues: One wears a yellow dress decorated with hearts; the other wears a striped shirt (and no trousers). No one can miss that the baby bear is the adults’ little darling.
Sweet—but more for adults than children. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Dec. 24, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-68010-603-9
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Satisfactory text; irresistibly delightful illustrations.
A bedtime-prayer board book features a family of badgers.
Speaking in a gentle rhyme, the badgers ask for God’s blessings for family and friends and offer gratitude for the gifts of the natural world. Temple’s stanzas have a lullaby lilt to them, with a cadence that remains consistent throughout. With the exception of the first and last stanzas, which are voiced by the older badgers, the little badger relates the text. The accompanying images show the little badger remembering how much there is to be thankful for, from loved ones like grandparents to the moon and stars. It’s Braun’s illustrations that truly speak to little readers. The badger family is adorable; the softness and simplicity of their features are charming. The same is true of the other woodland creatures and animals. A wintry scene stands out from the rest thanks to the feelings of frostiness and wonder it evokes. There’s the little badger wrapped in a red scarf, nose to the sky, and a tiny mouse leaning on a walking stick, the soft snow floating down around them. Other details, like a lemonade bottle tucked in a picnic basket and a toy boat with a leaf sail, add depth and interest to the scenes.
Satisfactory text; irresistibly delightful illustrations. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-68010-632-9
Page Count: 22
Publisher: Tiger Tales
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
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