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COUNTING WITH A LADYBUG

Name: COUNTING WITH A LADYBUG
Author: James Mitchem
ISBN: 978-1-4654-6390-6

by James Mitchem & Dawn Sirett ; illustrated by Rachael Parfitt Hunt ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 8, 2018

While the texturing on the pages adds novelty, the book has little substance

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Wander with a little ladybug while counting sets of creatures from one to 10.

“One little ladybug” invites readers to “follow her trail” as she crawls along debossed paths that crisscross the thick pages. For each number, the ladybug introduces a new set of animals, each with distinctive indented shapes on their bodies that provide a tactile experience of one-to-one correspondence. Upon arriving at a cramped last page, the ladybug urges readers to “count everyone again,” a task easier said than done given that all the prior animals are now miniscule and difficult to differentiate. From this blasé plot to the perfunctory, strained rhyming couplets, the entire book feels generic. The ladybug heroine remains frozen in a perpetually grinning pose, and the animal sets feel haphazardly chosen, with eight types of insects arbitrarily interspersed with bunnies and ducklings. The multilayered art, a mishmash of flat backgrounds overlaid with clip-art–like graphics and animal photographs, is not unattractive but lacks soul. At least the tactile elements might appeal. The trails and imprints are easily traced by a child’s finger and may help develop fine motor skills. At points, the debossing adds real richness, as with the enticing spiral shells of the “three hungry snails.” But with the adorable mammals, it’s a real disappointment that there are no fluffy tummies.

While the texturing on the pages adds novelty, the book has little substance . (Board book. 2-4)

Pub Date: May 8, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-4654-6390-6

Page Count: 12

Publisher: DK Publishing

Review Posted Online: June 10, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2018

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S CONCEPTS

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A KISSING HAND FOR CHESTER RACCOON

From the Kissing Hand series

by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2014

Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original...

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A sweetened, condensed version of the best-selling picture book, The Kissing Hand.

As in the original, Chester Raccoon is nervous about attending Owl’s night school (raccoons are nocturnal). His mom kisses him on the paw and reminds him, “With a Kissing Hand… / We’ll never be apart.” The text boils the story down to its key elements, causing this version to feel rushed. Gone is the list of fun things Chester will get to do at school. Fans of the original may be disappointed that this board edition uses a different illustrator. Gibson’s work is equally sentimental, but her renderings are stiff and flat in comparison to the watercolors of Harper and Leak. Very young readers will probably not understand that Owl’s tree, filled with opossums, a squirrel, a chipmunk and others, is supposed to be a school.

Parents of toddlers starting school or day care should seek separation-anxiety remedies elsewhere, and fans of the original shouldn’t look to this version as replacement for their page-worn copies. (Board book. 2-4)

Pub Date: April 1, 2014

ISBN: 978-1-933718-77-4

Page Count: 14

Publisher: Tanglewood Publishing

Review Posted Online: May 18, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES

- BOOK REVIEW
CHESTER RACCOON AND THE ALMOST PERFECT SLEEPOVER
by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson

- BOOK REVIEW
KAI TO THE RESCUE!
by Audrey Penn ; illustrated by Mike Yamada

- BOOK REVIEW
A COLOR GAME FOR CHESTER RACCOON
by Audrey Penn & illustrated by Barbara L. Gibson

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FIVE BLACK CATS

by Patricia Hegarty ; illustrated by Julia Woolf ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2013

For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery.

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A troop of cats traverse a spooky landscape as they make their way to a party hosted by ghosts.

Each double-page spread shows the felines’ encounters with the likes of an owl, jack-o’-lanterns or a bat. One or two of these creepy meetings may be too abstract for the youngest readers, as the cats hear eerie noises with no discernible source on the page. The text, which consists of one rhyming couplet per scene, mostly scans despite a couple of wobbles: “Five black cats get a bit of a scare / As the flip-flapping wings of a bat fill the air.” The sleek, slightly retro art, likely created using a computer, depicts the cats cavorting at night through a shadowy cityscape, the countryside and a haunted house; they may scare some toddlers and delight others. A brighter color palette would have given the project a friendlier, more universal appeal. Luckily, the well-lit, final party scene provides a playful conclusion.

For toddlers unafraid of typical Halloween imagery. (Board book. 2-4)