COLD, CRUNCHY, COLORFUL

Brocket’s latest in the Clever Concepts series uses photographs to explore the five senses.

The text explains the five senses in a way even the youngest of readers can understand, and it’s paired with simple photos that highlight just what the text is mentioning but that are also full of patterns, shapes, colors and textures. They highlight everyday sights and objects with new angles and perspectives that will have kids looking around on walks in the neighborhood—plants, architectural details, rocks and flowers are prominently featured. We use our eyes to see colors, read books, discern patterns; our ears to hear; we feel with our hands, our feet, our skin; our noses smell things that are nice but also things that are not so nice—garbage, for instance. “We use our tongues to taste…. // We can taste many flavors. Juicy cherries, spicy chilies, and jammy cookies. / Oily, salty fish. Fluffy vanilla frosting. Cool, minty toothpaste.” Brocket concludes by pointing out that we often use more than one sense at a time—eating a crunchy pretzel twist uses all five senses at once—and two pages of photo collages challenge readers to name which senses are in use in each.

Teachers and parents eager for their children to experience the world in a different way will be thrilled.