As the subtitle suggests, this toddler book takes the form of cooking instructions, from an introductory spread of ingredients (“1 hungry Baby Bundt / 1 bib, washable,” etc.) to the narrative itself (“Spread the sauce all around. / Slurp up every bit”). The clean, retro-style illustrations depict a Kewpie-like Baby Bundt and his older sister, who helps to orchestrate the fun. The terse text leaves room for visual irony—“Set aside for lunch” depicts a smiling baby whose high chair is surrounded by jettisoned toys—making it less a book for babies themselves than one to be shared with babies and older siblings at the same time. Its companion, Blast Off, Baby Bundt: A Recipe for Playtime (ISBN: 978-0-7636-3777-4), takes the same format. (12 mos.-4)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3778-1
Page Count: 24
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2009
The titular little kitty frolics gently in a similarly diminutive backyard, observing the flora and fauna, napping and stretching before cuddling up to its little girl for a “great big hug.” Feder’s rhyming text and Schwartz’s delicate line-and-watercolor illustrations, done in a palette of pastel hues, are right on target for older babies and toddlers who are beginning to explore their own worlds, and the small trim emphasizes the coziness of the whole experience. Both it and its companion, A Little Puppy (ISBN: 978-0-7636-2651-8), make a developmental misstep with spreads that oppose their protagonists in different scenes and in vignettes: Children of the age of the target audience will not understand that those two (or three) kitties are in fact the same kitty drawn multiple times. (9-24 mos.)
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-7636-2650-1
Page Count: 14
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2009
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
The perennially popular lift-the-flap format combines with the equally well-received invitation to make animal noises in this pleasing romp through a variety of regions and biomes. An African child on the riverbank asks, “Who can snap?” Lift the flap in the reeds for the answer: “I’m a crocodile. I can!” A duck in a farm pond, a panda in a bamboo grove, a wolf on the tundra and a parrot in an Asian jungle follow in succession, all leading to a final spread that unites all the children: “And we all can sing!” Mockford’s illustrations employ baby-friendly bold, black outlines and vibrant colors. A companion volume, Walk with Me (ISBN: 978-1-84686-179-6), explores animal locomotion. (6-24 mos.)
Pub Date: March 1, 2009
ISBN: 978-1-84686-180-2
Page Count: 16
Publisher: Barefoot Books
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2009
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