An appealing goodnight book, though all those questions might suggest an earlier bedtime in order to accommodate them all.
A mobile inspires a child’s dream of flying in a rocket.
Vibrant cover art depicts a child peering through a round window. The same child is then shown tucked into bed beneath a mobile with stars, planets and a rocket with round windows; attentive readers will recognize this decoration from front endpapers. Ensuing pages show the child traveling through space in the rocket and eventually zipping around an earthly environment, too. Meanwhile, Ziefert’s text invites speculation by posing questions like “Where are we going?” and “Are we there yet?” This participatory approach is heightened when pictures use the book’s physicality to elucidate text—for example, “up…and on the left” is accompanied by a picture of the rocket moving upward. The text then employs direct address to ask, “What’s on your left?” Ultimately, dreamscapes recede to reiterate the image of the child in bed and the rocket dangling from the mobile. A concluding page of text resounds, “HERE!” heralding the return and then shifts to a closing interrogative stance, inviting readers to respond to questions like “What’s to your right? What’s to your left?” There’s an inverted echo of Goodnight Moon here, with the text resisting naming things in its realm and instead asking child readers to name things in theirs.
An appealing goodnight book, though all those questions might suggest an earlier bedtime in order to accommodate them all. (Picture book. 2-4)Pub Date: Aug. 12, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-60905-340-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Blue Apple
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An inventive and extensive counting experience that will delight youngsters.
Shaped pages help youngsters count to 10 and beyond.
Two stylish double-page spreads are devoted to each number one through 10 and then, counting by 10s, to 100. In the first spread, the right-hand side is a page-high, die-cut numeral that spills off the page; to its left, a squirrel holds an acorn. With the turn of the page, there’s a transformation. “One acorn becomes… / one oak tree!” A portion of the object, animal or person being altered is visible through the die-cut openings; a sand castle peeks through the “0” of the number 10, for instance. Once the page is turned, the background from the previous left-hand page merges with the full double-page spread. As in the earlier Alphablock (2013), the helpfulness of these visual hints is uneven. After 10, 20 caterpillars become 20 butterflies, 30 baskets of cucumbers become 30 jars of pickles, and 40 eggs become 39 chicks and one dinosaur. The whole shebang ends with 100 puzzle pieces fitting together into “one big puzzle!” in the book’s only double gatefold. Peskimo’s muted color palette and droll cartoon style works well with the playful concept. The same worries about the binding that arose with Alphablock are an issue here, but the conceit will likely appeal to older children anyway.
An inventive and extensive counting experience that will delight youngsters. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Aug. 5, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4197-1374-3
Page Count: 94
Publisher: Abrams Appleseed
Review Posted Online: July 28, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2015
Especially for fans of big trucks and machinery.
When hard work needs to get done, who’re you gonna call?
Young construction-vehicle mavens will enjoy this fun romp that takes them through a cheery bright-orange excavator’s typical workday: crushing garbage and loading it into a dump truck; helping with the installation of a new water pipe after the old one broke and spewed water through a city street; and digging a deep, wide hole in which to plant the mayor’s new tree. Through all these tough, painstaking tasks, the excavator “wears” an ever present smiling face, headlights standing in for large, bright eyes. Jaunty verses that mostly read and scan well narrate the brisk proceedings, and listeners are likely to want to chime in whenever the excavator’s assistance is called for in refrains such as “We need you, Orange Excavator!”—set in orange type, of course. The unfamiliar word excavator in itself should excite little ones because of its length, juicy mouth feel, and aural appeal. Kids will also appreciate the lively, though generic, illustrations; enhancing visual interest are several words throughout set in larger, colored capitals. The excavator’s driver is brown-skinned; other workers and passersby are diverse in skin tone and age. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Especially for fans of big trucks and machinery. (Board book. 2-4)Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-20240-1
Page Count: 28
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2022
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