A lovely reminder that laughter is most valuable when shared.
The author/illustrator of Will Ladybug Hug? and Will Bear Share? (both 2018) provides another valuable life lesson in this cleanly illustrated, simple story.
The animal and insect cast of Leung’s earlier works returns with an entertaining reminder not to take oneself too seriously. The story is simple but rich. When Giraffe wakes up on the wrong side of the bed, his friends set out to cheer him up. Can they get a chuckle or a smile out of their stubborn, grumpy friend? In successive double-page spreads, the question is posed again and again: “Will Giraffe laugh with Bear?”; “…with Crocodile?”; “…with Sheep?”; “…with Frog?”; “…with Ladybug?” Juggling, a puppet show, balloon animals, goofy tongue tricks, and flowers all backfire with spectacularly silly results that will have little ones cracking up even as Giraffe gets more and more dour. When Giraffe loses his cool and yells at his friends, though, he realizes he’s gone too far. A desperate gambit to make his friends laugh goes hilariously awry, and a muddier but wiser Giraffe learns the value of laughing at himself. Despite the stylish economy of the artwork, each character is improbably expressive. The book concludes by asking toddlers, “How do you cheer up your friends?”
A lovely reminder that laughter is most valuable when shared. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Jan. 29, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-338-21561-8
Page Count: 38
Publisher: Cartwheel/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Jan. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
A joyful celebration.
Families in a variety of configurations play, dance, and celebrate together.
The rhymed verse, based on a song from the Noodle Loaf children’s podcast, declares that “Families belong / Together like a puzzle / Different-sized people / One big snuggle.” The accompanying image shows an interracial couple of caregivers (one with brown skin and one pale) cuddling with a pajama-clad toddler with light brown skin and surrounded by two cats and a dog. Subsequent pages show a wide array of families with members of many different racial presentations engaging in bike and bus rides, indoor dance parties, and more. In some, readers see only one caregiver: a father or a grandparent, perhaps. One same-sex couple with two children in tow are expecting another child. Smart’s illustrations are playful and expressive, curating the most joyful moments of family life. The verse, punctuated by the word together, frequently set in oversized font, is gently inclusive at its best but may trip up readers with its irregular rhythms. The song that inspired the book can be found on the Noodle Loaf website.
A joyful celebration. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-22276-8
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Rise x Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2020
Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come.
Little Blue Truck and his pal Toad meet friends old and new on a springtime drive through the country.
This lift-the-flap, interactive entry in the popular Little Blue Truck series lacks the narrative strength and valuable life lessons of the original Little Blue Truck (2008) and its sequel, Little Blue Truck Leads the Way (2009). Both of those books, published for preschoolers rather than toddlers, featured rich storylines, dramatic, kinetic illustrations, and simple but valuable life lessons—the folly of taking oneself too seriously, the importance of friends, and the virtue of taking turns, for example. At about half the length and with half as much text as the aforementioned titles, this volume is a much quicker read. Less a story than a vernal celebration, the book depicts a bucolic drive through farmland and encounters with various animals and their young along the way. Beautifully rendered two-page tableaux teem with butterflies, blossoms, and vibrant pastel, springtime colors. Little Blue greets a sheep standing in the door of a barn: “Yoo-hoo, Sheep! / Beep-beep! / What’s new?” Folding back the durable, card-stock flap reveals the barn’s interior and an adorable set of twin lambs. Encounters with a duck and nine ducklings, a cow with a calf, a pig with 10 (!) piglets, a family of bunnies, and a chicken with a freshly hatched chick provide ample opportunity for counting and vocabulary work.
Uncomplicated fun that sets readers up for the earlier, more-complicated books to come. (Board book. 1-4)Pub Date: Jan. 2, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-544-93809-0
Page Count: 16
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018
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