BUTTERFLY'S SURPRISE

A sparkly, smiling butterfly looks for a present that “Mommy and Daddy” butterfly have hidden in this lift-the-flap board book.

She peeks under the seven flaps but finds only animal friends. She stands on her back legs or flits from grass to leaf to rosebush to tree to nest. Finally, the flap with a rock on it is lifted to reveal the gift: a rainbow, as gaudy as butterfly herself. The story, though wordy, is slight and silly. The noises the cartoonish animals make are mostly unremarkable, but readers will be puzzled by the turtle that says, “Lah-dee-dah.” The pink and purple butterfly with curling antennae is identified as female. One must wonder if the artist had made it black and brown would it be referred to as male? And of course, any budding entomologist knows butterfly parents just lay their eggs and go off to die. They don't hang around to dote on their offspring, who as “children” are larvae rather than fully developed butterflies—but these scientific facts would render the whole premise of the book moot. Of course, toddlers probably won't care about such details, but they also won't care about this contrived and predictable story. There are no surprises here. From a structural standpoint, while the board pages are sturdy enough, the flaps are quite flimsy and likely will not last through more than one or two encounters with a determined toddler.

Flutter by it.