Buzz on by this one.
Two die-cut cardboard worker bees accompany readers through an introduction to honeybees.
They are set into shaped holes in the cover and attached to the book with yellow ribbons, but subsequent pages give them no real place to rest or otherwise interact with the text, reducing them to glorified bookmarks. The bees speak to readers in the first-person plural, imparting basic information in a series of declarative sentences. Unfortunately, odd phrasing combines with oversimplification for a bumpy ride. “We fly from flower to flower spreading pollen dust,” for instance, both neglects the bees’ gathering of pollen as a foodstuff and adds the wholly unnecessary “dust,” mischaracterizing the substance. They do “a dance called the Waggle”—like the Charleston?—rather than a waggle dance, and its description is brushed in very broad strokes. In the hive, they “chew flower nectar”—a liquid and therefore unchewable—“to make honey” rather than performing the complicated enzymatic process that actually takes place. Dove’s illustrations depict an impossible hive (an old-fashioned straw one bisected by a branch) rather than a modern wooden hive or an actual feral nest. While most in the board-book audience are likely not to know the difference, to present them with vague, fact-adjacent information and active untruths for the sake of a gimmick that doesn’t work particularly well does them a disservice. If it’s too complicated to communicate clearly, don’t bother trying.
Buzz on by this one. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: March 19, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-4521-6892-0
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
There are better fish in the board-book sea.
Dramatic stock photos and die-cut tabs are the distinguishing features of this board book.
“Did you know that there are over 400 types of sharks?” is an intriguing opening, but readers primed to find out about those specific types may be surprised that the shark on the facing page is not identified. Instead, the picture of a shark above a school of fish gives a sense of its size. Smaller text explains that shark skeletons are made of cartilage, not bone. Layered die cuts that accentuate the nose and mouth of nine different sharks on the right-hand pages invite children to turn the pages quickly. White type printed against various contrasting colors on the left-hand pages offers tidbits of information but is unlikely to make young children pause long enough to be read the text. A picture of almost 40 sharks swimming together seems to contradict the accompanying explanation that many sharks are endangered. A final full-color spread speaks of sharks’ important role in maintaining ocean balance and includes a picture of a grandfatherly shark scientist. The back cover is devoted to information for adults. While intriguing and scientifically credible, the wordy text and seemingly arbitrary factoids are well beyond the attention spans of all but the most avid young fans of the species.
There are better fish in the board-book sea. (Board book. 3-4)Pub Date: June 6, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4549-2128-8
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Sterling
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A serviceable exploration of the animal kingdom.
Little ones learn about sea life.
Animals found under the sea are the focus of this board book. An abcb rhyme scheme is employed to tell little readers about sea turtles, great white sharks (which smile benevolently if toothily), seals, blue whales, and sea horses. Each animal is discussed in two double-page spreads that offer basic facts: sea turtles lay their eggs on beaches; great whites are white only on their bellies; blue whales eat “tiny creatures.” Some facts are impenetrable and even inaccurate: of the seal, the text claims a “deep-sea diving suit of blubber keeps this swimmer dry”; the blue whale is as “big as any jumbo jet.” The illustrations feature smiling animals colored with deep hues that evoke the depths of their environment. The final page of the board book boasts further facts about each creature featured. Similar titles Forest Folk and Sky Guys are concurrently published, introducing little readers to forest critters and winged beasts respectively, using the same abcb format and design. While the graphics in each are appealing, the texts leave much to be desired.
A serviceable exploration of the animal kingdom. (Board book. 2-3)Pub Date: March 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-908985-86-6
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Button Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 10, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
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