Have the real paints handy.
Who’s ready to dip their fingers in the paint?
The primary-colored dots from Press Here (2011) are back, but while last time they focused predominantly on motion, this time they plunge headlong into color mixing. It starts with a gray dot in the middle of a glossy white page, which the reader turns into a host of colored dots by following direct, friendly instructions. After some play, three large splotches appear: red, blue, yellow. “With one finger take a little bit of the blue… / and just touch the yellow. Rub it… gently….” The result isn’t overexplained—the narrator simply says, “See?”—and, best of all, that new green blob looks exactly the way a real-life, finger-mixed result of that particular blue and yellow would look. Unmixed yellow and blue even peek out from under its edges. While the participatory nature may recall an app, nothing feels digital here; in fact, Tullet’s paintings show paint texture so lusciously it’s hard to remember that these are dry illustrations. Shaking the book, tilting the book sideways and closing the book “so the colors squish together” yield more color-mixing results, all temptingly textured like real paint. Fingerprints and spatters enhance the casual, welcoming vibe. As with Press Here, one-on-one reading will best serve the invited participation.
Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4521-3735-3
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: July 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2014
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their...
Less ambitious than Chris Gall’s widely known Dinotrux (2009) and sequels, this British import systematically relegates each dinosaur/construction-equipment hybrid to its most logical job.
The title figures are introduced as bigger than both diggers and dinosaurs, and rhyming text and two construction-helmeted kids show just what these creatures are capable of. Each diggersaur has a specific job to do and a distinct sound effect. The dozersaurus moves rocks with a “SCRAAAAPE!!!” while the rollersaurus flattens lumps with a cheery “TOOT TOOT!!” Each diggersaur is numbered, with 12 in all, allowing this to be a counting book on the sly. As the diggersaurs (not all of which dig) perform jobs that regular construction equipment can do, albeit on a larger scale, there is no particular reason why any of them should have dinosaurlike looks other than just ’cause. Peppy computer art tries valiantly to attract attention away from the singularly unoriginal text. “Diggersaurs dig with bites so BIG, / each SCOOP creates a crater. // They’re TOUGH and STRONG / with necks so long— / they’re super EXCAVATORS!” Far more interesting are the two human characters, a white girl and a black boy, that flit about the pictures offering commentary and action. Much of the fun of the book can be found in trying to spot them on every two-page spread.
Count on construction die-hards falling in love, but discerning readers would be wise to look elsewhere for their dino/construction kicks. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: April 2, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-9848-4779-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A visually striking, engaging picture book that sends the message that everyone counts.
A playful counting book also acts as a celebration of family and human diversity.
Shannon’s text is delivered in spare, rhythmic, lilting verse that begins with one and counts up to 10 as it presents different groupings of things and people in individual families, always emphasizing the unitary nature of each combination. “One is six. One line of laundry. One butterfly’s legs. One family.” Gomez’s richly colored pictures clarify and expand on all that the text lists: For “six,” a picture showing six members of a multigenerational family of color includes a line of laundry with six items hanging from it outside of their windows, as well as the painting of a six-legged butterfly that a child in the family is creating. While text never directs the art to depict diverse individuals and family constellations, Gomez does just this in her illustrations. Interracial families are included, as are depictions of men with their arms around each other, and a Sikh man wearing a turban. This inclusive spirit supports the text’s culminating assertion that “One is one and everyone. One earth. One world. One family.”
A visually striking, engaging picture book that sends the message that everyone counts. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: May 26, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-374-30003-6
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Frances Foster/Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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