Just the ticket for the tot who’s applying early-early-early-early-early decision to Harvard; better hope the RAs will...
The melodramatic French novel of sin and redemption set against various backdrops of unrest is boiled down to 12 words.
Yep: 12. Words. This board book for the nascent genius begins with “poor,” includes such stirring language as “happy” and “climb” and ends with “together.” Perfectly adorable felt dolls posed against (mostly) three-dimensional backgrounds depict the characters displaying the emotions/characteristics or engaging in the actions described. “Rich” positions a prosperous-looking Jean Valjean in a blue frock coat in front of, presumably, his factory; turn the page to see a “sad” Cosette dressed in rags and wielding a broom, looking out a window. With or without significant interpolation (like, several hundred pages’ worth) from an adult, there is absolutely no way any baby chewing and drooling on this book will make the connection between those two figures and the now-adult Cosette and graying Jean Valjean out for a merry “stroll.” But forget the gaps in narrative; how many babies have yet wrapped their heads around the concepts of “rich” and “poor”? Publishing simultaneously, Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace delivers a similarly sweetly illustrated, ludicrous truncation.
Just the ticket for the tot who’s applying early-early-early-early-early decision to Harvard; better hope the RAs will change diapers. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: May 30, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-927018-21-7
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Simply Read
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A lovely, simple lift-the-flap book that will stand the test of many a mighty tot.
Little ones learn about bugs.
The world of insects and like small creatures is the focus of this sturdy board book. Each turn of the page gives readers a close view of a particular habitat. The text asks, “Where’s the ladybug?” or “Where’s the snail?” and little ones are encouraged to find the creatures under shaped felt flaps. A caterpillar poses under a leaf with a few bites taken out of it; a bumblebee flies behind a pink tulip. The flaps are made of a reasonably strong material, secured tightly within the book’s pages. Extremely determined readers may figure out a way to pull the flaps out, but most will enjoy flipping them up and over with ease. The last page of the book contains a mirror hidden behind a bush-shaped flap, and readers are asked “And where are you?” The insects smile with big eyes and are composed of large, circular, clean-edged shapes. The color palette is dulled, making the neon flaps pop effectively for little readers. Concurrently publishing companion Where’s the Giraffe? explores the world of jungle animals.
A lovely, simple lift-the-flap book that will stand the test of many a mighty tot. (Board book. 1-2)Pub Date: March 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-7636-9335-0
Page Count: 10
Publisher: Nosy Crow
Review Posted Online: June 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2017
A sweet but standard-issue Christmas read.
Little ones are taught their ABCs with Christmas iconography.
A CAT nibbles on a candy cane, and FOXES sing holiday carols, while LANTERNS glow and ORNAMENTS sparkle on festive trees. Christmas is in the air, and so are the letters of the alphabet. Each letter gets a corresponding Christmas illustration, charmingly colored and cozily composed. The easily read text beneath each picture forms rhyming couplets (“GEESE with gumdrops stacked up tall. / HOME is where we deck the halls”), with the key word set in all caps. The imagery mixes spiritual and secular icons side by side: there are baby JESUS, SANTA, the “Three kind KINGS,” and (a little mystifyingly) “UNICORNS donning underwear.” The warm color palette draws little readers in, and the illustrations have a gingerbread-cookie aesthetic, though there is no real attempt to include Christmas traditions such as luminaria from nondominant cultures. The picture that groups a stereotypical Eskimo, an igloo, and some penguins will madden many readers on both cultural and geographical fronts.
A sweet but standard-issue Christmas read. (Board book. 1-3)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-7624-6125-7
Page Count: 26
Publisher: Running Press Kids
Review Posted Online: Nov. 1, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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