This classic story of naughty puppies and their backyard adventures—complete with fuzzy caterpillars, musical flowers,...
One of the first 12 books published in the Little Golden Book series and arguably one of the most beloved, this is the perfect choice to debut the series on iPad, iPhone and iPod.
Developers very smartly kept the book's distinctive appearance and original 1942 story and illustrations. Once readers crack open that familiar golden spine, they can personalize the "inside cover" with a child's name and picture. The tilt and touch features are simple but well executed, and the app is loaded with educational goodies. The icon in the top right of each page unlocks interactive learning games appropriate for preschoolers, and kids earn "stickers" for counting or color and word recognition. These can be used at the end to create a personalized scene to save to the photo album. Each word is highlighted as it is read; when the narration has been turned off, readers who need help can tap on individual words to hear them. Not only will nostalgic adults be thrilled to share a favorite book with a child, but the option to record your own voice reading the text will be especially attractive to grandparents or parents who are away.
This classic story of naughty puppies and their backyard adventures—complete with fuzzy caterpillars, musical flowers, crickets and frogs and all topped off with dessert—is sure to be a favorite yet again. (iPad storybook app. 2-6)Pub Date: Aug. 25, 2011
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Random House Digital
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2011
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own...
The sturdy Little Blue Truck is back for his third adventure, this time delivering Christmas trees to his band of animal pals.
The truck is decked out for the season with a Christmas wreath that suggests a nose between headlights acting as eyeballs. Little Blue loads up with trees at Toad’s Trees, where five trees are marked with numbered tags. These five trees are counted and arithmetically manipulated in various ways throughout the rhyming story as they are dropped off one by one to Little Blue’s friends. The final tree is reserved for the truck’s own use at his garage home, where he is welcomed back by the tree salestoad in a neatly circular fashion. The last tree is already decorated, and Little Blue gets a surprise along with readers, as tiny lights embedded in the illustrations sparkle for a few seconds when the last page is turned. Though it’s a gimmick, it’s a pleasant surprise, and it fits with the retro atmosphere of the snowy country scenes. The short, rhyming text is accented with colored highlights, red for the animal sounds and bright green for the numerical words in the Christmas-tree countdown.
Little Blue’s fans will enjoy the animal sounds and counting opportunities, but it’s the sparkling lights on the truck’s own tree that will put a twinkle in a toddler’s eyes. (Picture book. 2-5)Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-544-32041-3
Page Count: 24
Publisher: HMH Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2014
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Cookie-cutter predictability.
After all the daring escapes in the How To Catch… series, will the kids be able to catch Santa?
Oddly, previous installments saw the children trying (and failing) to catch an elf and a reindeer, but both are easily captured in this story. Santa, however, is slippery. Tempted but not fooled by poinsettias, a good book (attached to a slingshot armed with a teddy bear projectile), and, of course, milk and cookies, Santa foils every plan. The hero in a red suit has a job to do. Presents must be placed, and lists must be checked. He has no time for traps and foolery (except if you’re the elf, who falls for every one of them). Luckily, Santa helps the little rascal escape each time. Little is new here—the kids resort to similar snares found in previous works: netting, lures, and technological wonders such as the Santa Catcher 5000. Although the rhythm falters quite a bit (“How did we get out you ask? / It looked like we were done for. / Santa’s magic is very real, / and I cannot reveal more”), fans of the series may not mind. Santa and Christmas just might be enough to overcome the flaws. Santa and the elf are light-skinned, one of the children is brown-skinned, and the other presents as Asian. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Cookie-cutter predictability. (Picture book. 3-6)Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781728274270
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Aug. 15, 2023
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